The Milwaukee Brewers must upgrade rotation before the deadline
The Milwaukee Brewers remain one of the hottest offensive teams in baseball. Their pitching, however, leaves a lot to be desired and should be bolstered at the deadline.
Christian Yelich is having a spectacular follow up season to his 2018 MVP campaign. He is doing everything he can to bring the Milwaukee Brewers back to the postseason as a Wild Card.
With Yelich having another elite MVP campaign, the Brewers currently 53-48, second place in the NL Central, two games behind the Cubs, and 0.5 games ahead of the St. Louis Cardinals for the last Wild Card spot.
More from Call to the Pen
- Philadelphia Phillies, ready for a stretch run, bomb St. Louis Cardinals
- Philadelphia Phillies: The 4 players on the franchise’s Mount Rushmore
- Boston Red Sox fans should be upset over Mookie Betts’ comment
- Analyzing the Boston Red Sox trade for Dave Henderson and Spike Owen
- 2023 MLB postseason likely to have a strange look without Yankees, Red Sox, Cardinals
Besides their lights out, two-time All-Star closer Josh Hader, the Brewers are fueled by their lineup. In addition to Yelich, Milwaukee shines under the lights of outfielder Ryan Braun, catcher Yasmani Grandal, and infielder Mike Moustakas.
Despite having a stacked lineup and one of the best closers in baseball, this is not enough. If the Brewers were to develop into real contenders, they need to trade for some starting pitching.
Milwaukee is 11th out of 15 teams in the National League when it comes to ERA and opponent’s batting average and has allowed the third-most runs in the NL.
The most eye-opening statistic is that Milwaukee has the fewest amount of quality starts.
The Brewers have not had a pure “ace” in a long time. This year, they thought they were going to be able to get away with their mediocre rotation.
Even though Brandon Woodruff is having an impressive season, 11-3 with a 3.75 ERA through 117 2/3 innings pitched, he should not be their big-game pitcher in October. Zach Davies is having a solid season as well but does not belong in the front of a playoff rotation
Some very likely trade candidates that the Brewers could go after include Texas Rangers starter Mike Minor, the New York Mets’ Zack Wheeler, and the Arizona Diamondbacks’ Robbie Ray. All of them would bolster the middle or back-end of a contender’s rotation.
These would be blockbuster deals, but if Zack Greinke, Madison Bumgarner, or Noah Syndergaard become available, the Brewers should be one of the first teams picking up the phone.
Next. Yankees: Will Derek Jeter Make HOF Unanimously?. dark
If the Milwaukee Brewers wants to make it deeper into the postseason than last year, then they need to prioritize acquiring starting pitching before the trade deadline.