2020 Trade Targets

[markedman5]

[Eye Black]

For those who didn’t click the link, per Robert Murray: At 11-14, the Brewers are an interesting team to monitor with the trade deadline nine days. Teams that have spoken to Milwaukee say they’re stuck in the middle and that if they do buy, they’re prioritizing players with multiple years of control.

 

I believe this is the route they will go if they make any trades. I think it will be difficult to rely solely on free agency to patch weaknesses, so if you can find players now with multiple years of control that could go a long way towards improving next year’s roster.

[nate82]

For a bat I think these players are all on the table but I am not sure teams are going to be willing to put money in on a deal due to the season so I think returns for players who have a high salary are going to bring in less than they normally would. Teams may just hold onto these players if the return is below what they think they can get in the off season.

 

3B Kyle Seager SEA

3B Todd Frazier TEX

OF Corey Dickerson MIA

OF Gregory Polanco PIT

1B Brandon Belt SF

1B Mitch Moreland BOS

OF Mike Yastrzemski SF

OF Andrew Benintendi BOS

 

Seager is going to be a tough trade for the Mariners as I don't think teams are going to be willing to take on all of his contract and the Mariners are not going to want to pay a lot of his contract. Depending on the future there may not be fans again next year for MLB which will cut into their revenue and thus teams are going to go with younger and cheaper players. Seager is not young nor is he cheap. The same with Belt the Giants are going to have a hard time finding a suitor for him and get a decent return.

 

Seager and Frazier make the most sense for the Brewers. I believe Stearns will go with below the radar guys like Dickerson, Seager or Frazier. I would love to get either Yastrzemski or Benintendi but I am not sure if the Red Sox are willing to part with Benintendi and I believe the Giants maybe over valuing Yastrzemski and you won't see him moved by the deadline. Think Casey McGehee type of value where teams are not sure of what his value is and it maybe lower than what the Giants believe his value truly is.

 

Couple of possibilities:

 

Giants get:

Ashby, Lutz, Supak

 

Brewers get:

Yastrzemski

 

Mariners get:

Fry and Ward

 

Brewers get:

Seager and $12m

 

Rangers get:

Faria

 

Brewers get:

Frazier

 

Red Sox get:

Andrews, Black, Lutz, Small

 

Brewers get:

Benintendi and Chavis

[Eye Black]

Good stuff Nate.

 

I agree that I think the Giants will likely value Mike Yastrzemski much greater than other organizations. Hard to believe he turns 30 years old tomorrow and won’t hit free agent until 2026.

 

As noted, the Brewers and Mariners would really have to thread a needle to make the financials work, but if they did somehow pull it off Kyle Seager might be the best possible solution for fixing the production-less black hole at 3B for the next 1.5 years (albeit a risky one based on age and a proneness to performance fluctuation).

 

I am a fan of Urias and think he’ll be a good contact hitter. The problem is he isn’t going to show a lot of power, so you lose a lot of his value by running him out there at an offensive oriented position like 3B as opposed to the middle infield.

[Devinep]

For those who didn’t click the link, per Robert Murray: At 11-14, the Brewers are an interesting team to monitor with the trade deadline nine days. Teams that have spoken to Milwaukee say they’re stuck in the middle and that if they do buy, they’re prioritizing players with multiple years of control.

 

I believe this is the route they will go if they make any trades. I think it will be difficult to rely solely on free agency to patch weaknesses, so if you can find players now with multiple years of control that could go a long way towards improving next year’s roster.

 

That’s pretty difficult to do with a weak farm system though. If not rentals, maybe Wilmer Flores or Renato Nunez would be attainable 1B/3B bats

[brewers888]

We should be sellers and hope that a team looking to win like San Diego or the Dodgers is desperate enough to overpay for Hader. This team is not even remotely close to being a true contender. We don't need to make any rash moves to sneak into a water downed playoffs where we would have little chance of advancing.

[Eye Black]

That’s pretty difficult to do with a weak farm system though. If not rentals, maybe Wilmer Flores or Renato Nunez would be attainable 1B/3B bats

I think you’re onto something with a Renato Nunez type addition. I would be all for the Brewers taking a chance on acquiring some less heralded corner infielders right around the peak of the aging curve (age 26-28 range).

 

Including Nunez, below is a list of similar players reaching their peak age that I’d be intrigued by:

 

Renato Nunez (1B/3B, Orioles, Age 26)

 

Ryan McBroom (1B/OF, Royals, Age 28)

 

Jeimer Candelario (1B/3B, Tigers, Age 26)

 

Johan Camargo (3B/2B, Braves, Age 26)

I can’t quit on Carmargo.

 

Jared Walsh (1B/LHP, Angels, Age 27)

From Brookfield, two-way player, crushed Triple-A pitching last year.

 

Sheldon Neuse (3B, A’s, Age 25)

Probably the best prospect on this list, but about to turn 26 and hasn’t really been in A’s plans yet.

 

Brent Rooker (OF/1B, Twins, Age 25)

Rooker is a former 1st round pick that is all bat (including a great OBP in 2019), but little fielding ability. He’s about to turn 26 and doesn’t appear in the Twins current plans.

[Devinep]

That’s pretty difficult to do with a weak farm system though. If not rentals, maybe Wilmer Flores or Renato Nunez would be attainable 1B/3B bats

I think you’re onto something with a Renato Nunez type addition. I would be all for the Brewers taking a chance on acquiring some less heralded corner infielders right around the peak of the aging curve (age 26-28 range).

 

Including Nunez, below is a list of similar players reaching their peak age that I’d be intrigued by:

 

Renato Nunez (1B/3B, Orioles, Age 26)

 

Ryan McBroom (1B/OF, Royals, Age 28)

 

Jeimer Candelario (1B/3B, Tigers, Age 26)

 

Johan Camargo (3B/2B, Braves, Age 26)

I can’t quit on Carmargo.

 

Jared Walsh (1B/LHP, Angels, Age 27)

From Brookfield, two-way player, crushed Triple-A pitching last year.

 

Sheldon Neuse (3B, A’s, Age 25)

Probably the best prospect on this list, but about to turn 26 and hasn’t really been in A’s plans yet.

 

Brent Rooker (OF/1B, Twins, Age 25)

Rooker is a former 1st round pick that is all bat (including a great OBP in 2019), but little fielding ability. He’s about to turn 26 and doesn’t appear in the Twins current plans.

 

I’d add Miguel Andujar to that list too. He’s not on the roster even with Stanton and Judge hurt so he could be a good buy low candidate

[Devinep]

There are a lot of variables, but non-rental trade targets depend on who is currently a long term piece, obviously. If Arcia continues to hit well enough to be at least a part-tome starter, Urias can start at 3B quite a bit.

 

Assuming they re-sign Braun, that leaves a 1B/DH (maybe OF too). and 1B/3B as 2 options for getting the bats this offense really needs. I’m hoping they get one big bat (Ex: Yuli Gurriel) in FA but there aren’t many 3B options and they’ll be expensive.

 

So I hope they get a 3B who can slide over to 1B because Braun won’t play every day and Urias can slide over to 3B for Arcia to play SS.

 

Options who can do that and can also hit:

-Wilmer Flores

-DJ Lemehiu (FA but wont be cheap)

-Renato Nunez

-Brian Anderson (also plays OF)

-Colin Moran

[balsamlaker]

Tough to think Stearns should be "buying" after getting swept by the Pirates. The team doesn't appear to be one or two players away.

[Devinep]

Tough to think Stearns should be "buying" after getting swept by the Pirates. The team doesn't appear to be one or two players away.

 

I think that’s why you’d be looking at guys with future control, regardless of whether or not they help this year, like Andujar who I mentioned earlier.

 

Don’t look at it as buying or selling, look at it as getting controllable talent.

 

I’d be good with them getting a controllable 3B who starts right now AND trade Hader if both trades were for the right price

[TURBO]

At this point, I think we need to walk away from Braun. Don't get me wrong, I'm not in the Braun bashing camp, far from it, I just think that unless we get an unbelievable home town discount, keeping him around just isn't going to be worth the cash. Is he good enough to have to worry about finding him playing time?

 

I think not.

[adambr2]

At this point, I think we need to walk away from Braun. Don't get me wrong, I'm not in the Braun bashing camp, far from it, I just think that unless we get an unbelievable home town discount, keeping him around just isn't going to be worth the cash. Is he good enough to have to worry about finding him playing time?

 

I think not.

 

Braun's as good as gone after 2020, barring intervention from Mark A. himself which would be a pretty inexcusable overstep.

 

Only way I can see him sticking around is if we pay the buyout and then he wants to come back on like a 1 year/4M type deal. We don't have guys in the minors banging on the door to take over OF and 1B spots, so it's possible. But it's probably time to just move on.

[pacopete4]

With the DH possibly staying around it makes it more likely they figure something out.

[adambr2]

With the DH possibly staying around it makes it more likely they figure something out.

 

Yeah, that's a good point the more I think about it. Plus if they feel that his veteran leadership is worth something around the clubhouse, they may put a value on that too. Seems to be something that we're missing a lot with Cain this year over just the numbers.

 

From Braun's end I would guess if we're offering something like 1/4M and other team(s) are interested in him at 1/6 for example, he'd probably take the lesser amount to just stay here for one more year rather than finish somewhere new, but that's just my own guess.

[pacopete4]

I would just like one more full year of watching him play. As lousy as he made the middle part of his career, he’s done all he can for the organization and himself to change. I’d like to see him have a nice ending to his Brewers career on not such a weird situation. But time will tell. The DH coming is the only thing that possibly saves it. I completely agree that we are lacking some leadership with the Cain departure for the year.

[shanedog19]

I would let teams know Hader is available and get the best prospect haul you can get. He seems less valuable to us now that we are using him in a one inning closer role. With more playoff spots available, I bet the price for Hader would be high.

[Ron Robinsons Beard]

I would let teams know Hader is available and get the best prospect haul you can get. He seems less valuable to us now that we are using him in a one inning closer role. With more playoff spots available, I bet the price for Hader would be high.

 

Not only would Hader be the best available reliever on the market, he's also the best reliever in MLB full stop. He's also got 3 more years of control after this season, albeit more expensive control as he goes through the arbitration process. The cost is going to be high, but I think there is probably a team out there who would meet what the Brewers are asking for.

[adambr2]

I would let teams know Hader is available and get the best prospect haul you can get. He seems less valuable to us now that we are using him in a one inning closer role. With more playoff spots available, I bet the price for Hader would be high.

 

Not only would Hader be the best available reliever on the market, he's also the best reliever in MLB full stop. He's also got 3 more years of control after this season, albeit more expensive control as he goes through the arbitration process. The cost is going to be high, but I think there is probably a team out there who would meet what the Brewers are asking for.

 

I'm all for it if the asking price is met. The return needs to be huge, and the years of control should ensure that it is.

[nate82]

What about Clevinger and Plesac for Hader? There are rumors that one or both maybe traded by or before the deadline.

 

Doesn't solve the hitting issue but it would give the Brewers a rotation of Clevinger, Woodruff, Plesac, Houser and Burnes. That would be a really good rotation where the offense is not going to need to be that much of an issue.

[trwi7]

What about Clevinger and Plesac for Hader? There are rumors that one or both maybe traded by or before the deadline.

 

Doesn't solve the hitting issue but it would give the Brewers a rotation of Clevinger, Woodruff, Plesac, Houser and Burnes. That would be a really good rotation where the offense is not going to need to be that much of an issue.

 

Cleveland wouldn't do it for one, let alone both.

[mlloyd10]

What about Clevinger and Plesac for Hader? There are rumors that one or both maybe traded by or before the deadline.

 

Doesn't solve the hitting issue but it would give the Brewers a rotation of Clevinger, Woodruff, Plesac, Houser and Burnes. That would be a really good rotation where the offense is not going to need to be that much of an issue.

 

Cleveland wouldn't do it for one, let alone both.

 

Cleveland would definitely do it for Plesac...I dont think Plesac is that good though..

[Madhawk23]

What about Clevinger and Plesac for Hader? There are rumors that one or both maybe traded by or before the deadline.

 

Doesn't solve the hitting issue but it would give the Brewers a rotation of Clevinger, Woodruff, Plesac, Houser and Burnes. That would be a really good rotation where the offense is not going to need to be that much of an issue.

 

Cleveland wouldn't do it for one, let alone both.

 

Cleveland would definitely do it for Plesac...I dont think Plesac is that good though..

 

No way in hell Stearns would be doing a straight up trade of Hader for Plesac, so the Indians would have to throw in another big prospect in this deal. Like someone else suggested - maybe Nolan Jones? I know MLB Pipeline has him ranked just inside the Top 50, so maybe that would be a good package for Hader? Selfishly though, I guess I would hope we might be able to net a bit more for Hader. I know prospect rankings aren't the "be all/end all," but I just find it a bit curious that Plesac was never a big prospect coming up through the Indians farm system - and it appears that he's putting up better numbers at the MLB level than he did at any point in the minor leagues. Anyone know what has changed with him? Did he find an uptick in velocity, or a new pitch? Just odd that he went from a guy that was not on anyone's radar to a really good MLB starting pitcher. Is some regression coming for him?

[LouisEly]

I hope the Marlins convince themselves that they are not contenders because I'd love for the Brewers to cheaply acquire Matt Joyce to solve that backup corner OF black hole/need another LH bat.

[Eye Black]

MLB Trade Rumors posted their Top 50 Trade Deadline Candidates yesterday.