Sonny Gray

[MNBrew]

They can have Wilkerson AND a 25-30 (or sub-30) ranked A-ball player. Can't pass up that deal!

 

Besides, Wilkerson was previously in the Red Sox' system and what a brilliant way to rub a playoff defeat in the Red Sox' faces if you're the Yankees!

[Roderick]

Besides the injuries down in the bullpen, I'm wondering if part of the issue is the results of relievers being used to cover too many innings all season long.

 

I think the easy way out on the bullpen having a bad stretch is to say it is workload. When you look game to game, I do not see anyone in the pen pitching too much.

 

If anyone was it would Jeffress and Jennings. Jeffress isn't an issue as we know. And Jennings is pitching a little stronger lately than in the middle of the season. It would be nice if they kept him away from righties a little bit more, but sometimes he pitches in blowouts and it doesn't matter. Williams isn't probably used to this season, but you hope a 27 yo would make it, regardless he just got a break anyways.

[MNBrew]

Besides the injuries down in the bullpen, I'm wondering if part of the issue is the results of relievers being used to cover too many innings all season long.

 

I think the easy way out on the bullpen having a bad stretch is to say it is workload. When you look game to game, I do not see anyone in the pen pitching too much.

 

If anyone was it would Jeffress and Jennings. Jeffress isn't an issue as we know. And Jennings is pitching a little stronger lately than in the middle of the season. It would be nice if they kept him away from righties a little bit more, but sometimes he pitches in blowouts and it doesn't matter. Williams isn't probably used to this season, but you hope a 27 yo would make it, regardless he just got a break anyways.

I've long thought the 8-man bullpen is overkill, but if starters only cover 4-6 innings the majority of the time, then maybe each guy's getting comparable use if you go back to the days of the 6- and 7-man bullpens and most starters routinely went 5-8 innings.

 

Maybe it's just an unfortunately timed bad (read: mortal) stretch for a handful of guys at once. And maybe data-informed scouting's just gotten that much more "fancy" (read: good) re: dissecting pitchers' stuff, tendencies, etc., just like it got to being over the past decade-plus on hitters.

 

In the end, I think a solid starter would still be a plus for the Brewers right now and Sonny Gray makes a lot of sense.

[brewmann04]

the yanks just put CC on the DL and that means Gray not going

[JosephC]

Yanks were smart not to stop after the Happ acquisition, going out and getting Lynn could turn out to be a pretty decent move for them. Just wondering if Tanaka will make it though the rest of the season.

[Eye Black]

I am not convinced this necessarily makes sense for the Brewers, but it sounds like the Yankees are indeed planning to move Sonny Gray this offseason.

 

Per this Bob Nightengale Tweet:

 

Brian Cashman says he has been in talks with several teams about Sonny Gray and has full expectations of trading him this winter.

[TURBO]

Would have made a lot more sense if we still had DJ...

[Ron Robinsons Beard]

Would have made a lot more sense if we still had DJ...

 

It makes sense regardless. He's a terrific bounce-back candidate. I have no doubt that whoever is chosen as the new pitching coach will follow many of the same principles as the previous one.

[JosephC]

IMO the Brewers will likely be close enough to Attanasio's payroll limit where gambles like this would have to be payroll neutral. Personally, I'd just rather keep Thames for the left-handed bat, but initially didn't think it would be crazy for a Thames/Gray swap. Yankees might be desperate to dump Gray, and while I certainly don't think Thames would be their first choice, they have had issues at 1B the last couple of years.

 

Then I looked at the arbitration estimate for Gray and it is 9.1 million. No thanks. He might get moved and have a great 2019 season, but let somebody else take that gamble.

 

The other thing about Gray is that since the start of the 2016 season he's had: 4.59 ERA, 93 ERA+, 4.21 FIP, 1.38 WHIP. So it's not like he just crashed when he got to New York. As a whole, over the last three years he just been a really sort of average/below-average pitcher.

[Eye Black]

Via this Tweet from Max Wildstein:

 

Source: #Yankees have spoken to the Braves, Blue Jays, Reds, Brewers, and Giants about Sonny Gray. GM Brian Cashman has mentioned that he will trade away Sonny Gray this offseason.

[Oxy]

We need lefties a lot more than righties. Same as everybody else I suppose, but Gray doesn't seem like an obvious upgrade or diversification of the staff that we have-and he's not particularly cheap.

[ewitkows]

On the radio they were talking Gray for Schoop

[OldSchoolSnapper]

I would take him for Schoop in an instant though I doubt that is a real possibility.

[JosephC]

If the Brewers aren't going to offer Schoop arbitration, then it only becomes an issue if they want to tie up 9 million in Gray or use the 9 million elsewhere (catching upgrade). Yankees seem desperate to move Gray, and have a 1 year middle infield opening with the Gregorius injury. Both players are only controlled for 1 more season. It seems to make sense for both sides.

 

If Attanasio bumps the payroll enough where the Brewers add Gray's 9 million and still have 12-15 million to play with (add a top catcher and a 2B bridge to Hiura), then I wouldn't be opposed to a Gray/Schoop swap.

[clancyphile]

If the Brewers aren't going to offer Schoop arbitration, then it only becomes an issue if they want to tie up 9 million in Gray or use the 9 million elsewhere (catching upgrade). Yankees seem desperate to move Gray, and have a 1 year middle infield opening with the Gregorius injury. Both players are only controlled for 1 more season. It seems to make sense for both sides.

 

If Attanasio bumps the payroll enough where the Brewers add Gray's 9 million and still have 12-15 million to play with (add a top catcher and a 2B bridge to Hiura), then I wouldn't be opposed to a Gray/Schoop swap.

 

After Hiura's AFL season... do we really need a bridge to Hiura, or just to plug him in on Opening Day?

[Kelbysdaddy]

I would be all for a Schoop for Gray swap! Gray didn’t seem to like the high pressure in NY. I’d bet a move to Milwaukee would make him much more comfortable and he’d be back to his Oakland form.

[long ball]

If the Brewers aren't going to offer Schoop arbitration, then it only becomes an issue if they want to tie up 9 million in Gray or use the 9 million elsewhere (catching upgrade). Yankees seem desperate to move Gray, and have a 1 year middle infield opening with the Gregorius injury. Both players are only controlled for 1 more season. It seems to make sense for both sides.

 

If Attanasio bumps the payroll enough where the Brewers add Gray's 9 million and still have 12-15 million to play with (add a top catcher and a 2B bridge to Hiura), then I wouldn't be opposed to a Gray/Schoop swap.

 

After Hiura's AFL season... do we really need a bridge to Hiura, or just to plug him in on Opening Day?

 

I'm not saying it's right, but there is no way Hiura will be on the opening day roster. Teams just don't promote top prospects until they gain that extra year of control. I think that's somewhere around 4/28/19. So that's probably the earliest we see Hiura regardless of how how he hits in spring/AAA and independent of other options they have at second base to start the season.

[HarveysWBs]

If the Brewers aren't going to offer Schoop arbitration, then it only becomes an issue if they want to tie up 9 million in Gray or use the 9 million elsewhere (catching upgrade). Yankees seem desperate to move Gray, and have a 1 year middle infield opening with the Gregorius injury. Both players are only controlled for 1 more season. It seems to make sense for both sides.

 

If Attanasio bumps the payroll enough where the Brewers add Gray's 9 million and still have 12-15 million to play with (add a top catcher and a 2B bridge to Hiura), then I wouldn't be opposed to a Gray/Schoop swap.

 

After Hiura's AFL season... do we really need a bridge to Hiura, or just to plug him in on Opening Day?

 

I'm not saying it's right, but there is no way Hiura will be on the opening day roster. Teams just don't promote top prospects until they gain that extra year of control. I think that's somewhere around 4/28/19. So that's probably the earliest we see Hiura regardless of how how he hits in spring/AAA and independent of other options they have at second base to start the season.

 

If even the Cubs played that game with Bryant, then you better believe we’re waiting for service time milestones before we promote Hiura. Heck, if the team is in first place with duct tape and bandaids at second, I bet the brain trust doesn’t even think about promoting him until Super 2 time in June or later. The Brewers are contenders now, but a budget-conscious mindset probably still remains. If they’re intent on hanging on to Hiura for the long haul (as opposed to making him the centerpiece of a blockbuster trade), then they want to do what every team does: squeeze every day of control they can from him. That is the nature of the beast.

 

And, you know, the guy only has 74 games over A-ball and none at AAA. And he is hundreds of game reps behind his peers in terms of defensive appearances. I love the kid, too, but I’m not proclaiming him a batting champion like some people. If he pans out better than Rickie Weeks did (who had similar hype, of course), I’ll be satisfied, if ever so wistfully. If he makes multiple all-star games, I’ll be thrilled. But to hear some people tell it, the kid might as well be a lock as a franchise great. Let’s not rush anything.

[Hammer]

I have been a fan of the Gray to Milwaukee narrative for a couple of years now. I'm really just hoping that he doesn't get traded to the Reds with DJ waiting there to "fix" him...

[TURBO]

Jon Paul Morosi of MLB.com reports that the Brewers have been in contact with the Yankees about a trade for Sonny Gray.

 

This backs up recent reporting from Max Wildstein of Gotham Sports Network. It's no secret that the Yankees are shopping Gray and he's a sure thing to be dealt at some point this winter. The 29-year-old is coming off a 4.90 ERA this past season and has been a poor fit for New York, but there's plenty of appetite in him as a buy-low. The Brewers fit in this dynamic. Gray made $6.5 million in 2018 and has one year of arbitration before hitting free agency.

 

Source: Jon Morosi on TwitterDec 4 - 11:23 AM

[JosephC]

It will be interesting to see what the Yankees get. Average fWAR/bWAR for Grey over the last three years is only 1.4. It was 1.15 if just looking at 2018. If one values him at 1.4 WAR for 2019 then 1.4 * 9 million = 12.6 million in value - 9 million he's projected to make = +3.6 million in surplus value. Numbers say he is only worth a couple fringe prospects.

[StearnsFTW]

I'm fine with Gray. I'm not giving up much though. Thinking similar to a Cy Sneed type guy

[brewmann04]

I think Gray gives us a solid #2 and really would like the rotation.

[Mr Southpaw]

Gray for Thames and a small extra

[A Swing and A Drive]

Gray for Thames and a small extra

 

This trade makes a ton of sense for both clubs. Yankees could platoon Thames/Voit at 1B and use whatever minor league chip we trade them to flip at the trade deadline to improve their MLB club. Maybe someone along the lines of Troy Stokes or Marcus Diplan. Thames will make $6M in 2019 with a Club Option for $7.5 in 2020. ($1M Buyout), so swapping him and Gray would be nearly a salary cap wash for both clubs as well.