What We Learned: The Trade Deadline Recap

Today was the MLB trade deadline for players to be traded during the regular season. In a change from previous seasons, this is the only deadline this season. There is not a “waiver trade deadline” this year. This is it for trades during th e regular season. As usual, the Brewers were active in the hours leading up to the deadline. However, the moves were a bit different than in the previous few years.

Let’s start by looking at who the Brewers brought in and who is leaving the organization.

Players In:

• Jordan Lyles (From PIT)
• Jacob Faria (From TB)
• Drew Pomeranz (From SF)
• Ray Black (From SF)

Players Out:

• Cody Ponce (To PIT)
• Marcos Diplan (To MIN)
• Jesus Aguilar (To TB)
• Mauricio Dubon (To SF)

There was a clear focus on the pitching staff this year, and that’s not surprising. The starting rotation needs some help with recent injuries and the bullpen has been mixed at times this year. However, the names aren’t ones that you would expect to see. Lyles and Pomeranz will hopefully provide value this year, though neither have numbers that inspire a lot of confidence. Meanwhile, Faria and Black have struggled, but have plenty of team control and could still turn around.

Here are each of the moves:

Brewers bring back Jordan Lyles in trade with Pirates, DFA Marcos Diplan

Over the offseason, the Brewers didn’t re-sign Jordan Lyles, and he ended up with the Pirates. The Brewers traded for him to get some rotation help, sending Cody Ponce in the trade, as well as designating Marcos Diplan for assignment.

Report: Brewers trade Jesus Aguilar to Tampa Bay

The Brewers infield was becoming a bit crowded, so some space needed to be cleared up. They did that by trading away Jesus Aguilar, who had shown signs of rebounding but hadn’t got back to where he was last season. In return, they got Jacob Faria, who has struggled a bit in 2019 but has plenty of team control and can hopefully get back to where he was in 2018.

Brewers trade Mauricio Dubon to San Francisco Giants for Drew Pomeranz, Ray Black

In one of the stranger moves before the deadline, reports came in that the Brewers were trading away Mauricio Dubon in a “significant” trade. Speculation was rampant until the details came out, with the Brewers acquiring Drew Pomeranz and Ray Black. Pomeranz had been starting but struggled and went to relief, where he had some good innings. The Brewers also got Ray Black, a hard-throwing reliever with a high strikeout rate, but also not much for secondary pitches and a high tendency to walk batters.

Report: Brewers trade Marcos Diplan to Twins for cash

With Marcos Diplan in limbo after the acquisition of Jordan Lyles, the Brewers had to do something before the deadline or would not be able to trade him. With his stock down, the Brewers sent him to the Twins for an undisclosed cash amount.

With that, the trade deadline has passed, and the Brewers have the players they will play out the season with. Will these moves help the Brewers get to the playoffs? We will have to see how the last two months play out.