Milwaukee Brewers: Two teams offer deals to Bryan Shaw?

Paul Hoynes of Cleveland.com reports that two teams have made multi-year offers to free agent Bryan Shaw. Could the Milwaukee Brewers have an offer to Shaw already?

The Milwaukee Brewers are aggressively pursuing all of the top pitching targets this off season. Is it completely unbelievable to think David Stearns already has an offer to Bryan Shaw? Yes, it is.

Shaw is one of the top relief targets this off season, right?

Absolutely. For the past five seasons with the Cleveland Indians, Shaw has been the model of relief pitching consistency. He’s thrown at least 70 games since 2011. His ERA has never been over 3.52. Shaw has posted a K/9 over 7.00 every year, and his BB/9 has never exceeded 3.78. He was the ideal bridge to Andrew Miller and Cody Allen. It’s no wonder that two teams already have offers in.

Are the Brewers one of the teams?

There’s about a 10% chance that one of the teams is the Milwaukee Brewers. The New York Mets are a mortal lock for one of the spots. Shaw’s former pitching coach is their new manager, and Hoynes even speculates that the Mets are one of the teams. There are too many potential suitors out there to say that the Brewers are for sure in on Shaw.

For perspective, David Stearns only made small moves through free agency in 2015-16. Will Middlebrooks and Franklin Morales were the ‘marquee’ free agent signings from two years ago.

Last year, Eric Thames signing came after Thanksgiving, and Neftali Feliz signed in January. While the Milwaukee Brewers are believed to be more aggressive this year, making an offer to Bryan Shaw wouldn’t fit David Stearns M.O. at all.

Would the move make sense for the Brewers?

Yes and no. While the Milwaukee Brewers do need to build a bridge to closer Corey Knebel. Shaw does have the skills the team is looking for, but the years and dollars Shaw will command would bust David Stearns budget. Adding Shaw now means that the Brewers might not have the cash to add to their rotation. The team will likely add a reliever or two before the off season ends. However, a move for Shaw is probably not the right one at this point.

It’s also unclear if Shaw would want to come to Milwaukee. Does he want to close or is he just looking for dollars? If he wants a closer’s job, he won’t take the Brewers calls.

Next: How real is the Brewers' interest in Lance Lynn?

While it’s interesting for the relief pitching market to heat up this early, it’s unlikely that the Milwaukee Brewers are in play for Bryan Shaw. Knowing David Stearns, he’s looking for a market inefficiency to exploit. He’s not looking to add the most expensive guy on the market before the Winter Meetings even start.