I still think the Brewers are going to fade a bit down the stretch, but they’re reportedly making a significant attempt to stave that off by filling in a serious hole in their offense:
Sources: #Mets close to trading 2B Neil Walker to the #Brewers.
— Ken Rosenthal (@Ken_Rosenthal) August 12, 2017
Neil Walker is being traded to brewers
— Jon Heyman (@JonHeyman) August 12, 2017
Walker, 31 and a free agent after this season, made his bones with the Pirates before spending last season and most of this one in New York. He’s not hitting quite as well this year as he did last year, but a .264/.339/.442 bat joining the Brewers is far from a non-event.
For some reason it feels like he’s always been a Cubs killer, too, though his line against the Cubs is just about the same as his career line. So, then, I guess the reason it feels like he kills the Cubs is because he’s just a good hitter.
The move will help, though it likely won’t be the difference between a playoff-bound Brewers team and one that finishes just out of the race. Perhaps this is partly their front office trying to “reward” a young and surprisingly competitive team with a show of faith after a very rough patch.