Winter Trade Candidates?

[MilwaukeesBest]

Given the paucity of free-agent starting pitching, and Garza's 2016 numbers not being awful (4.51 ERA), he could net a return similar to Adam Lind's last year.

 

Chase Anderson and Junior Guerra could also net good returns.

 

The return for Guerra won't be equal to his upside for the Brewers. Should he post a full season of 30 starts with an ERA around 3, his trade value would skyrocket or the Brewers could just hold on to him as a tremendous value. Anderson can be moved but it would have to be part of a package. He's a reliable 4-5 starter that most teams probably aren't coveting. Teams still might view Nelson as having untapped upside and make offers for him.

 

I think the likelihood of Guerra surviving a full MLB season healthy with an ERA around 3 would be a gamble to try to achieve for Milwaukee. Older pitcher with elbow problems isn't necessarily a guy that I'd trust to put together that type of season. With the shortage of this year's pitching market this might be the best time to sell high on Guerra.

 

For the same reasons you listed for Chase Anderson, I think teams would welcome a reliable veteran 4-5 starter, especially looking at his last handful of starts. Maybe he truly found something ditching his cutter. Could bring back something somewhat worthwhile as well.

[monty57]

Anyone is available for the right price, but I agree with those saying that it will take a lot for us to part with guys who have team control. I don't think we need to do much more tearing down, as all the moves over the past year and a half have laid the foundation, and we'll build from there.

 

Braun is likely dealt. This is the final "tearing down" move, but Brewers are trying to move him, so I would be surprised to see him as a Brewer next year. If moved, he will probably bring back a salary dump MLB guy (like Puig) who can fill out the MLB roster, as well as a good haul of prospects.

 

Gennett is likely dealt. The Brewers seem to like Villar at 2B, and Gennett can't play anywhere else, so he'd make a bad bench player. Someone will give us something for him, and he will start for a MLB team next year, but I wouldn't expect too much. I hope Stearns' magic can drum up another deal that people hate when it happens and are ecstatic about by the end of next season.

 

One of our SP could be dealt if we get a good deal, but we do not need to trade anyone. My guess is that they will shop Garza to see if they can eat some money and get a prospect, but if we can't find a deal, then at worst we could throw someone in the "long man/6th starter" role until someone gets hurt.

 

Thornburg is a possibility, but I think they'll wait until trade deadline to see if it's as big a meat market as it was this year.

 

Other than that, anything would be pretty minor. Maldonado is probably the odd man out at catcher, as he's the most expensive and isn't better than the other options. Kirk N could be kicked to the curb or kept... it really doesn't matter too much and with Braun likely gone, he may be the warm body they keep until better options are ready.

[sheetskout]

The more I think about it the more I'm convinced that we need to move Chris Carter now. His price is going to rapidly increase and although Carter has always shown power, co-leading the NL in HRs was something that no one saw coming. To me, it's less probable he can repeat that with his contact issues. We could get something for Carter at this point. Should he regress at all in 2017, with his price increases, we'd very likely not get anything in return for him.

[MKE81]

Nobody saw it coming? I, along with a lot of others on here and elsewhere, predicted him to hit 35+ HR. Nobody should be shocked by his production. While the Brewers could go with a 1b that hits for a higher BA/OBP they might not hit his OPS and won't replicate his power (35+). Carter was better defensively than what you always heard about him. Still isn't good but he's serviceable. Even if he gets 6-8M we aren't strapped so the price is only an issue if Stearns thinks teams wouldn't be interested in him at that price if he replicates or improves his performance. I think he's a Brewer next year for sure, at least for the first half.

[monty57]

Nobody saw it coming? I, along with a lot of others on here and elsewhere, predicted him to hit 35+ HR. Nobody should be shocked by his production. While the Brewers could go with a 1b that hits for a higher BA/OBP they might not hit his OPS and won't replicate his power (35+). Carter was better defensively than what you always heard about him. Still isn't good but he's serviceable. Even if he gets 6-8M we aren't strapped so the price is only an issue if Stearns thinks teams wouldn't be interested in him at that price if he replicates or improves his performance. I think he's a Brewer next year for sure, at least for the first half.

 

Probably off topic, but how are first basemen rated for defense? Is it like most positions rated for range? I don't think range is overly important for a first baseman. Like a catcher, the most important thing for a first baseman is fielding balls thrown at him. Therefore, he should probably be rated along the lines of a catcher's "pitch framing" more than rating him the same way you rate other positions.

 

As far as can/should he be traded, I think Carter comps well with Mike Napoli. He always seems to be in demand, so I think Carter will as well. Carter had a bad year in 2015 and was benched. We "bought low" and it paid off, so there's no reason to trade him unless we get good value in return, and even then we'd need to find another first baseman, so trading him doesn't make that much sense.

[adambr2]

Stearns said this today:

 

“For the past week, we’ve been engaged in talks that have progressed at a pretty good clip. I’m terrible at predicting when a trade gets over the hump or when it doesn’t, but we’re engaged on a number of fronts. We’re setting ourselves up for the possibility of making a deal.”

 

I'm not saying anything is inevitable, but it would seem like an odd thing to say for a team that isn't planning on making any trades.