The San Diego Padres placed starters Tyson Ross and Jordan Lyles on the waiver wire. The St. Louis Cardinals and Milwaukee Brewers claimed these players and acquired them and their contracts for nothing in return.
The San Diego Padres made no trades in these acquisitions. The Cardinals have recently lost Carlos Martinez due to injury while the Milwaukee Brewers lost Brent Suter.
Tyson Ross and his $1.75M base contract head to St. Louis. Lyles moves to Milwaukee who will have a low-cost option to keep him for 2019.
The Padres picked up several prospects before the trade deadline after letting go of some major bullpen arms. San Diego did not see Ross or Lyles as part of their future so they let them go to clear space on the team. Now they can take a look at some of their younger pitching prospects.
Cardinals Add Ross
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Ross is a former All-Star that failed to live up to his high bar in recent seasons. The Cardinals hope Ross can eat up innings and help them make up games in the NL Central. But, this is a weak addition to a team that looks more and more like this is just not its year.
Ross had a roll of decent starts through June. He has since fallen off considerably.
The Cardinals fired their manager Mike Matheny earlier this season. Matt Carpenter has hit the cover off the ball after a slow start. However the rest of the team looks jinxed this season.
St. Louis has a prideful fanbase and the team will not give up, but they are losing reason to believe in 2018.
Brewers Add Lyles
The Brewers could use Lyles as a spot starter. Lyles has an ERA over four, but he has pitched better as a reliever than a starter.
Brewers veteran bullpen arm Matt Albers has looked bad lately. Furthermore, Milwaukee recently placed Taylor Williams on the DL. Perhaps the Brewers will use Lyles out of the pen to help maintain their bullpen depth.
This is the first move from the Brewers in August, but some think they will still be looking for a more dominant starter to help the team in 2018.
The Brewers limped into the All-Star break by getting swept by the Pirates. However, after looking very good against the Giants, Dodgers and Rockies recently, they look primed to stay in the NL Central Division race with the Chicago Cubs longer this season.