Milwaukee Brewers Rumors: Team Actively Shopping Domingo Santana

The Hot Stove just keeps on getting hotter. While the Milwaukee Brewers haven’t made a move yet, there have been some interesting reports coming out of Orlando.

We mentioned recently that there has been some interest in Brewers outfielder Domingo Santana. The Brewers are ready to listen on Santana. And GM David Stearns made it appear that he’s simply doing his due diligence and listening to offers on his players. But that may not be the case. Multiple outlets report that Milwaukee is actively shopping Santana.

The key part in there is that they are trying to sell high on him. The price is extremely high on him right now and teams may not pay it. With Crasnick saying the market isn’t as brisk as the Brewers hoped, that means not as many teams are calling.

Tom Haudricourt had similar things to say.

It’s possible that Santana can ship off by the end of these Winter Meetings. After hitting 30 homers with a .278/.371/.505 batting line, Santana broke out this year and his value is still very high and may not get higher.

Jerry Crasnick brought up some very good points. He’s not a great defender and his strike out at a 29.3% clip in 2017. But he does walk a lot, drawing a free pass in 12% of his plate appearances this year. Santana does have one more year at league minimum before he hits arbitration and he will likely earn a big pay raise in arbitration.

After this report, it actually seems to make sense to shop Domingo Santana and clear him out of the outfield. Brett Phillips had a very strong showing in September and has the rocket arm to profile as a right fielder. If Santana is still in Milwaukee on Opening Day, that means both corner spots are perennial locks for Ryan Braun and Santana. So playing time looks towill probably be split in center between Phillips, Lewis Brinson, and Keon Broxton.

With trading Santana, Phillips can move to right and Brinson and Broxton can battle it out for centerfield. The revelation that Santana is being “actively shopped” by the Milwaukee Brewers is certainly interesting. He is often thought to be a future cornerstone. And his breakout this year came at the right time for him to earn a starting spot in the future. But he needs to be in Milwaukee.

If David Stearns can include Santana in a deal for a pitcher like Chris Archer or Marcus Stroman, that could be best case scenario. The Milwaukee Brewers are shopping him instead of reluctantly listening. So he might be in a trade for a guy like Danny Duffy or some other players that Brewers prospects would be thought to move in, instead.

Next: Winter Meetings Roundup: Day 1

There is no deal yet. But there is a lot of action on the rumor mill lately. There will probably be something big coming soon. Some fans may be upset that Santana is even in the discussion. But David Stearns knows what he’s doing and he will do what’s best for the ballclub.