Milwaukee Brewers Trade Deadline Preview

Jeremy Jeffress and Will Smith

A contender looking to bolster the back end of its bullpen will almost certainly kick the tires on Smith and Jeffress. Smith just returned from a torn ligament in his knee after having appeared in 78 games and 76 games the past two seasons respectively, and Jeffress has taken hold of the Brewers’ closing duties, going 15-for-16 in save situations.

Jeffress came on as a solid bullpen option in 2015, appearing in 72 games and posting a 1.5 bWAR in 68 innings of work. The right-hander was 5-0 as a setup man for Rodriguez, with a 2.65 ERA. This season, Jeffress is already worth 0.8 bWAR and sports a 2.36 ERA in 27 appearances.

Smith figured to compete with Jeffress for the closer’s role before bizarrely tearing the LCL ligament in his right knee while taking off his shoe towards the end of spring training. Just 26 years old, the lefty posted career-highs in strikeouts per nine innings, ERA, FIP, and bWAR in 2015, and has a fresh arm due to the stint on the DL.

Both Jeffress and Smith will be free agents at season’s end and should command decent money on the open market, which could cause some potential trade partners to look elsewhere. There is also the possibility, given the fact that both are relatively young, that Milwaukee could hold on to them for the remainder of 2016 and try to work out an extension with one or both.

Next: HR or bust