The 2022 trade deadline will not be one that Milwaukee Brewers fans will soon forget. To be sure, this is not a positive thing either.
The Brewers traded away the best relief pitcher in their history for Taylor Rogers, Dinelson Lamet and two prospects and Lamet was designated for assigning soon afterward as Josh Hader joined the Padres. Milwaukee then traded for Matt Bush and Trevor Rosenthal in separate deals. Missing from the line of transactions is one that Brewers fans were wishing desperately for: a bat to improve the offense.
However, the Brewers’ stats since the All-Star break prove that David Stearns was right in his approach. The Brewers did not need a bat. They needed middle relief.
The Offense Leads MLB in OBP, Slugging and OPS Since the Break
Many fans may not believe this on its face, but the Brewers offense is leading all of baseball in on-base percentage, slugging percentage and on-base-plus-slugging percentage since the All-Star break. Additionally, the team is hitting .274 overall since then.
As seen in the tweet above by Inside Edge MLB, the Brewers offense is actually outperforming powerhouse teams such as the Los Angeles Dodgers, New York Yankees and New York Mets. Key players who have heated up since the break include:
- Christian Yelich: .319 batting average and 14 runs scored
- Rowdy Tellez: .279 batting average with five home runs, 15 RBI, and 10 runs scored
- Kolten Wong: .343 batting average with two home runs, six RBI, and 14 runs scored
- Hunter Renfroe: .257 batting average, six home runs, 16 RBI, and 11 runs scored
Unfortunately, as the offense has heated up the bullpen continued to struggle even with its recent additions.
The Brewers Bullpen Is the Sixth Worst in MLB Since the All-Star Break
Using the same stats above (BA, OPB, SLG and OPS), Inside Edge MLB also laid out the worst bullpens in baseball since the All-Star break. While the Brewers are not the worst, and there are other contenders on the list, it is easy to see how this weakness has led to the team’s recent funk:
Pitchers who have struggled since the break include:
- Devin Williams: 0-2, 1.04 ERA and two saves in 10 appearances
- Taylor Rogers: 1-1, 5.87 ERA and four saves in eight appearances
- Brent Suter: 2-1, 3.38 ERA in seven appearances
- Hoby Milner: 0-0, 6.48 ERA in nine appearances
- Trevor Gott: 1-0. 3.86 ERA in eight appearances
The Brewers are still waiting for Rosenthal to be healthy enough to pitch. Additionally, Jake Cousins is rehabbing from his early-season injury. In other words, help may be on the way; but will it be too late at that point?
Conclusion
Of course, this does not make Brewers fans feel any better about the Hader trade, at least not yet. If anything, trading away the best reliever in all baseball seems to have had to opposite effect. Only time will tell if the bullpen can put it together quickly enough for the Brewers to regain (and then maintain) first place in the NL Central.
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