Milwaukee Brewers need starting pitching to take the NL Central
The Milwaukee Brewers should be in the conversation to take the NL Central in 2018. But if they truly want to dethrone the Chicago Cubs and beat out the St. Louis Cardinals, they’ll need to add to their pitching rotation.
This whole offseason, fans of the Milwaukee Brewers have been wondering whether or not general manager David Stearns and his front office would make a move for a top-tier starting pitcher. The offseason is winding down, but the need is still prudent for the Brewers’ future.
Brewers don’t have a true ace
Jimmy Nelson and Chase Anderson are probably the two best starters for the Brewers.
Nelson would be the Brewers’ ace, but he’s not expected to pitch until the All-Star Break. Nelson was having a career year for the Brewers before his injury. In his 175.1 innings pitched, Nelson posted an ERA of 3.49 and a FIP- of 69. If his FIP- is an indicator of how he’ll pitch in the latter half of 2018, this article may be moot. However, as always with injured players, it’s hard to count on the injured player to pick up right where they left off upon return.
Anderson became the de facto Brewers’ ace in 2017. He had a career year too with an ERA of 2.74 in 141.1 innings. The problem for Anderson is how significantly better 2017 was than his previous big league years. He also still hasn’t pitched more than 153 major league innings in a season.
A last minute free agent signing won’t be enough
With Yu Darvish and Jake Arrieta off the market, there aren’t many impressive starting pitchers left.
The best-left starting pitcher is Alex Cobb, but he alone would hardly be enough to consider the Brewers to be much better than they were yesterday. Since coming to the big leagues for the first time in 2011, Cobb has posted an ERA- of 89. While respectable, it’s not that of the ace that the Brewers might need.
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The Brewers don’t necessarily need to sign someone before Opening Day, however. They could be wise to see what they have to start the season, then see what’s available around the trade deadline.
Familiar MLB trade candidates might make sense for the Brewers
It seems like any time a team is in need of starting pitching, Chris Archer’s name is thrown into the mix. The Tampa Bay Rays have shopped him before, and if they find themselves buried in a competitive AL East, they might shop him again.
Archer is somewhat of a fringe ace. From 2013-2015, his ERA hung in the low 3.00s. In 2016 and 2017, however, it was 4.02 and 4.07 respectively.
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Whether or not the Milwaukee Brewers need a true ace to compete is debatable, but if they do think they’re ready to take the NL Central, they’ll at least need more starting pitching depth to do it.