Matt Breen

Can't yet because deal is not final until physical. Sure little by little things will be leaked until then I thought it was reported the physical was cleared and the deal is official. This thing was lined up for a while. Yes, he passed his physical. Just no numbers are out yet.

I think everybody hates things that they don't like. Remember what Yoda said: "Cubs lead to Cardinals. Cardinals lead to dislike. Dislike leads to hate. Hate leads to constipation."

I will add that I think Yelich is a great addition. It took a lot. Harrison stung for me the most. I knew Brinson would have to be part of the deal, so I was resigned to that. But I really liked Harrison's upside. I don't think anyone in the system had his combination of power/speed and ceiling. Brinson had those things too - but again, I was sort of resigned to losing him. It just stung a bit that we gave away the two guys in the system with really crazy high upsides (but I will admit - with big risks). In the end, the deal is done and I'm a Yelich fan. Time to play ball.

Why is Salazar such a big thing around here? He was so bad at one point last year that he was demoted to the bullpen, rebounded a little and then quickly went back in the tank. He's started 30 games once. Has gone over 140 innings once and in his career averages less than 6 innings per start. I'd want a damn good prospect coming back with Salazar if we're giving up Santana for him. I think Salazar is a tantalizing player because he looks great at times - and has had some success. 145K in 103 innings last year. 30 starts and a 3.45 ERA in 2015. All Star selection in 2016 (if you believe in that kind of stuff). His FIP has never been above 3.74. At age 28, that makes him pretty interesting. I don't know that much more about him, but his inconsistencies are troublesome. The ERA last year, the move to the bullpen - perhaps others have some insight.

I believe you are correct. Brinson was already on the 40 man roster - so that wasn't an issue. All of the other three guys were drafted - and signed - in 2014 at the age of 18. That means they would have five years under their belts after the 2018 season - so yes, they would have needed to be put on the 40 man roster or be exposed to the Rule 5 draft. I believe I am correct on this - but someone can correct me if I'm wrong.

Thirded. He just needed to get it out of his system I guess. I will just add that a) I totally get trwi7's joke about Braun at 3B. It wasn't being a troll. It was an old board joke. b) Sometimes, enough is enough. You don't like something, fine. Say so and move on. It's not just this thread - it happens all the time. And it ruins the experience for everyone else as two people exchange 20 posts about a subject that has nothing to do with the thread. c) Remember, you're never as funny in print as you are in your head. A joke or a sarcasm on a message board doesn't always work right. I'm not saying don't use sarcasm. I laughed at trwi7's Braun-to-3B joke. But be wary. It can just come across wrong - often times simply mean or condescending. d) be polite. It really does work. Thank you.

Maybe we can add Brett Lawrie in a deal. He can play 2B.

I'm locking this thread. Go to major league forum to discuss.

Word is that the Brewers are still trying to sign Lorenzo Cain. if so, that probably means Santana is on the move.

Money update after the Yelich deal. [pre]C Manny Pina 0.55 C Stephen Vogt 3.065 1B Jesus Aguilar 0.55 1B Eric Thames 5.0 2B Jonathan Villar 2.55 SS Orlando Arcia 0.55 3B Travis Shaw 0.55 LF Ryan Braun 20.0 RF Domingo Santa 0.55 CF Keon Broxton 0.55 OF Christian Yelic 7.0 OF Brett Phillips 0.55 INF Hernan Perez 1.975 SP Chase Anderson 4.75 SP Jimmy Nelson 3.7 SP Zach Davies 0.55 SP Brandon Woodr 0.55 S/R Brent Suter 0.55 S/R Josh Hader 0.55 RP Jeremy Jeffress 1.70 RP Corey Knebel 3.65 RP Jacob Barnes 0.55 RP Oliver Drake 0.55 IF Eric Sogard 2.4 RP Boone Logan 1.875 P Yovanni Gallard 2.0 SP Jhoulys Chacin 8.75[/pre] TOTAL: $75.565M Note: This total includes Braun's $4M deferred salary.

I can only give you a thumbs up for the inside info. Appreciate it. Thanks.

To be fair, Pedroia's minor league stat line is much more impressive than Dubon's. Correct. Pedroia was a Top 100 ranked guy at the same age as Dubon. His OPS was a 100 points higher than Dubon's at AAA - and Pedroia didn't have Colorado Springs to help him out. There's nothing wrong with Dubon - just many people don't think he'll hit particularly well in the majors - at least based on what they have seen so far. I'm all for giving the guy another year to mature. Who knows what he'll be like in a year. Guys can make big strides.

Defensively, Dubon is ready now. I don't think his bat will play as a starter - but that's my opinion. Maybe another year of seasoning will help him. The rest of the shortstops are mostly in the lower levels - many of them still teenagers. Meaning they are a long ways off. From all reports Diaz is not a good shortstop. Or even an average one. Same goes for guys like Erceg and Nate Orf. Just because they've played there in the past doesn't mean they should play there in the future. In a pinch they would work - but nothing more.

I know the trend in baseball is to youth, but my goodness the Brewers signed Aramis Ramirez to what turned out to be a 4 year $46 million deal when he was entering his age 34 season and he had a much less athletic body than does Cain. Granted wasn't as much money, but revenues in baseball are up considerably since 2012. Yeah the game has tilted toward youth, but 2012 is not that long ago and Cain has shown no signs he's anything but still in his prime. $15-16 million per year is far from outrageous for a player of his age and production. The Cubs are on the hook for $22 million a year for Heyward's age 32 and 33 seasons and he's not half the player Cain is right now. Who would you rather have the next 4 years, Heyward at $90 million (plus two more years at $44 million) or Cain even though he's older at $60-65 million total and no obligation after that? Cain's can be moved in that time too for a decent return barring a complete collapse. Just because Aramis Ramirez had a nice age 34 season doesn't mean Lorenzo Cain will. The Mets signed Jason Bay going into his age 31 season - they got 2.0 bWAR production TOTAL over the next four years for $66M. That does not mean I should think every age 31 player is going to suddenly stink. We can pick a hundred players and they will all be different - but as a whole, they show a trend. And the trend is that age 35 players aren't that good. As for Cain, yes, he is showing signs of slowing down. If you look at his defensive numbers (bWAR, fWAR, UZR), he has slipped every year for five consecutive years. He's still solid, but not great. He has offset that by becoming a better hitter. However, the odds are that he will regress. That's just the way it is. All that said, Lorenzo Cain has been a good player. And will likely continue to be a good player. He had a 5.3 bWAR and a 4.1 fWAR last year. Even if you say he regresses each year - and go with the lowest number (fWAR's 4.1 rating), you're talking about a guy that puts up 3.6, 3.1, 2.6 and 2.1 WAR. That's 11+ WAR - which is easily worth $60M (plus the lost draft pick). Ideally, you want to avoid that final year, but to be honest, if the club really wants him, and his price is reasonable (say 4-years/$56-60M) the extra year is much more palatable. I am concerned a bit about Cain's overall health. He's had some nagging injuries in his career - although last year he played more games than ever. Perhaps you can do a three-year deal with a fourth year vesting based on playing time.

With regard to some of the stuff HighHeat has posted, I can't say anything about any specific moves. But I can add that my own sources have said that the Brewers have had a lot of balls in the air for a long time. I posted this same thing weeks ago when many people were yelling at Stearns to make a move. The fact is, the team has been working really hard to make stuff happen - but they are not going to be idiots. They are going to make moves when it is right for them. Like HH posted, there are a lot of moving parts going on right now. I have been hesitant to get too excited about any transactions because as he said, one move can make everything fall apart. I will also add that the lack of movement in the FA market has hampered Milwaukee's moves. As some of the big names come off the board, you'll likely see the Brewers become more active. I know that the team has been looking specifically at quality starting pitching - both FA and trade targets. But that was weeks ago, so some things may have changed. None of this is new or surprising. It's just the nature of the beast right now. Things will happen when - and if - they happen.

I agree. I would actually ask people to create separate threads in the major league forum if you want debate some of these other topics. I realize that there is some relevancy, but now there are conversations that are overwhelming the main topic. Thanks.

I'm not a huge fan of the store bought brats like Johnsonville's and Klements and so forth. Nothing wrong with them - just nothing great. I prefer to go a good meat market. They can be hit or miss - but they are usually my favorite. I'll still get brats and polish sausages from Ken's in Monona. And Fraboni's - just around the corner - makes awesome Italian sausages.

I would love to have Yelich. I think he would really do well out of Marlins park. That said, I don't want to give up too much for him. Perhaps it's just me being greedy - but I still the strength of this organization is creating - and sustaining - a deep farm system. It's so easy to have a good farm system get depleted quickly - injuries, a poor draft, players don't develop - and when you trade some top notch guys it only puts you in a more difficult situation. Still, if you like the deal, then you do it. We can't sit around and navel gaze and second guess ourselves every time we thing about making a deal. Part of building having a lot of depth is to use it - whether at the Big League level - or in trades. I'm good with trading prospects if it's a decent deal. I think everything starts with Brinson. From there, I'd hate to give up Burnes, Harrison or Hiura. I don't want to give up Woodruff either - unless we get another pitcher via trade or free agency. Ultimately, if the Marlins want too much - walk away. We aren't Christian Yelich away from being a great team. He'd be a great help - but not at too great a cost.

Reminded me of this:

I think the issue with Burnes is ceiling. He has a nice arsenal of pitches, but nothing is really outstanding. I think it limits his upside in the eyes of some baseball people.

I have my criticisms of Kidd, but I thought he would survive. In the end, it's probably a good thing. Things were stale.

One thing that may happen is that the Brewers are making their 'big' moves this year - even if they aren't super confident they are contenders. The reason is that the market is down and the big boys seem to be waiting things out so they can stay under the Luxury Tax line - and be prepared for spending huge next season with the superstar class of free agents. Add in the fact that we do have room to take on salary and we do have a lot of prospect capital - perhaps the teams is just moving the timetable up a bit. If the club added some exceptional talent - let's say Darvish and Cain and Archer - we might not be the best team, but we would expect to contend. Just Darvish and Cain would be a nice addition. Just throwing stuff out there. Let's be honest, we aren't going to be in the hunt for Kershaw or Harper or Machado next season. But second tier additions - like Darvish - are still a pretty sweet gets. If we want to get a Harper or Kershaw type player we need to develop him. Trading for one is unlikely - as is signing one. A rotation of Darvish, Archer, Davies, Anderson and Chacin would be pretty interesting. And when Nelson is ready - you're looking good. Hader bolsters the pen. Again, just having fun with ideas.

I saw that too. I imagine he's a borderline guy. He'll be in some lists but not others. People want to see him step up his performance. He's stagnated a bit.

People need to keep in mind that acquiring a player (such as Ellsbury) doesn't mean we will keep him. As people have said, there may be a lot of moving parts here. While we could get Ellsbury in a deal with the Yankees, we could easily have another team lined up to take him after that. Just gotta wait and see how it all turns out.

More info on the Darvish offer... https://www.mlbtraderumors.com/2018/01/brewers-make-contract-offer-to-yu-darvish.html