I’d say “hey, it’s something!” but if it’s a good deal for the Brewers, it’s not like I’m rooting for it just to get some activity …
Hearing some buzz that the #Brewers are getting close to a trade. No more details at present, but they’ve been discussing outfielders with multiple clubs.
— Jerry Crasnick (@jcrasnick) January 21, 2018
If the #Brewers have a trade brewing, as I’m hearing, it’s not with the #SFGiants. They’ve also been talking to the #Whitesox, among other clubs.
— Jerry Crasnick (@jcrasnick) January 21, 2018
The outfielder thing has long been interesting for the Brewers, since they have a full up outfield of starters (Ryan Braun, Keon Broxton, Brett Phillips, Domingo Santana, and big-time prospect Lewis Brinson), though they have been rumored to be shopping Santana for some time. Does Crasnick mean they’d be sending *out* an outfielder, or bringing one in?
Sending one out seems more likely, but when I hear about a trade and an outfielder possibility right now, I immediately worry about the Yankees finding a taker for Jacoby Ellsbury and some of his salary. The Brewers would seem an odd fit there, but if the Yankees eat enough salary and include a prospect? You never know. And if the Yankees pull that off … hello money for a free agent starting pitcher.
There’s also the possibility that the Brewers are looking to pick up a starting pitcher in exchange for an outfielder, which could theoretically take them out of the free agent starter market, where they’ve been attached to most of the top names at various points in time.
We’ll keep an eye on this one for obvious reasons. Whatever the Brewers do might impact the Cubs from a competitive standpoint, and also might move this market along a little bit. Not that I’m obsessing about the extremely slow market or anything.