End of the line: Wily Peralta designated for assignment, Kirk Nieuwenhuis returns

Wily Peralta’s time with the Brewers has run out. The Brewers have finally decided to take the pitcher off of the roster.

It wasn’t a bad gamble to try and see if Peralta could turn things around this season, especially following his finish to last season (2.92 ERA/3.75 FIP in August/September). However, Peralta just never got going this year. As a starting pitcher, he had a 6.08 ERA in 8 starts. As a reliever, it was even worse with an 11.94 ERA in 11 appearances over 17.1 innings. His strikeout rate was better as a reliever (10.4 K/9), but his walk rate jumped as well (7.78 BB/9), and he allowed ten home runs overall this season in 57.1 innings. With this team pushing for the playoffs, it made no sense to continue to put him out there, as he couldn’t even be trusted in the lowest leverage situations anymore.

This is likely the end for Wily Peralta in the Brewers organization. There’s a strong chance that Peralta gets through waivers and is outrighted to Colorado Springs, though a team may see enough potential in Peralta to claim him. Heading to Triple-A may help him figure out his mechanics, but even if he does, it’s highly unlikely the Brewers will tender him a contract this offseason, as he would be due a raise on the $4.275 million he is making this season (even with the terrible year he has had). He could be resigned to a minor league deal this offseason, but at this point, it may be better for him to head to another organization where he can get a fresh start and potentially figure things out in a new environment.

Meanwhile, another contentious player is returning as the other half of the roster move. The Brewers selected the contract of Kirk Nieuwenhuis as well, and he is in Milwuakee for today’s game. Nieuwenhuis had a terrible start to the season, going .080/.233/.240 in 30 PA at the start of the year. Since going down to Triple-A, he’s been better, but not by much. In 196 PA at Colorado Springs, he’s recorded a .221/.338/.344 batting line. He has been better lately, recording a .261 batting average in the month of July. It’s likely just a move to improve the bench, and Nieuwenhuis won’t be more than a bench outfielder.

The natural question that comes with this is why Nieuwenhuis was brought back over Brett Phillips or Keon Broxton? There’s a couple of reasons why it makes sense. First of all, both Phillips and Broxton are within 10 days of being sent down, so they can’t be recalled except in case of injury. Second, it likely benefits them more to stay in Colorado Springs, where they can get regular at-bats, over coming to Milwaukee and getting a few starts and some pinch-hit appearances.

It’s the end of an era for Wily Peralta. Hopefully he can get things figured out and get his career turned around, but it’s time for everyone here to move on.

Statistics courtesy of Baseball-Reference and FanGraphs.