Brewers complete trade with Braves: Zach Quintana for Kyle Wren

Yesterday I reported the Brewers had possibly traded Zach Quintana to the Braves. As the report was initially unconfirmed I indulged in a little guess work. I had acknowledged it could be a change of scenery type swap for another minor league player, but really I was hoping for a bigger trade including a reliever. Instead it appears to be the former. Today it was announced the Brewers have traded Quintana for outfield prospect Kyle Wren.

MLB.com listed Kyle Wren as the Braves 17th best prospect. John Sickels at Minor League Ball  listed Wren as the Braves 16th best prospect. The 23 year old lefty was drafted in the 8th round of the 2013 draft. He is a center fielder who appears defensively competent enough to play the position in the majors. While he has very low power (MLB listed his power as a 30 on the 20/80 scale) he is fast. He stole 46 bases between Double-A and Triple-A this year. He can hit a little bit too as he's always had solid averages which have helped his OBP. Also, Wren won't need to be added to the 40-man roster until 2017 which is a nice added bonus.

Kyle Wren's ceiling appears to be that of a 4th or 5th outfielder who can play all three positions. While I'll agree that's not terribly exciting, it's pretty darned good for a minor league starter who was struggling in rookie and A-ball. As the last couple of years have taught us, Logan Schafer is a bit of a bust. He's been fine defensively, but atrocious offensively. His place with the club is not secured and Wren could be viewed as his successor.

Assuming Gerardo Parra returns in 2015, the Brewers won't need a replacement until 2016. Unless traded, Schafer will still be with the Brewers, but by then he'll be out of minor league options. It'll be his last chance to stick, even as a back-up. Should he fail, the Brewers will now have another option to go to where before they had none (unless Michael Reed was ready/good enough to play CF).