Milwaukee Brewers Rumors: Crew Has Interest In Twins Infielders

Most the Milwaukee Brewers rumors the past couple days have centered on Manny Machado of the Orioles. But reports are coming out now about the Brewers interest in a couple infielders from the Minnesota Twins.

Brewers GM David Stearns is looking at a few other rental bats to fix his middle infield problem. According to Jon Morosi, the Crew has had trade talks focused on Eduardo Escobar and Brian Dozier of the Twins.

The Twins were supposed to be the only challenger to the Cleveland Indians in the weakened AL Central, but a rough patch of baseball, including getting swept at Miller Park, has pushed them into becoming sellers.

Both Escobar and Dozier are free agents at the end of the year. Getting either one of these two would also cost the Brewers less in terms of prospects than it would to acquire Manny Machado.

How are these players doing this year?

Escobar is hitting .275/.330/.523 with 14 homers and 54 RBIs this season. He’s also a doubles machine, already having hit 35 two-baggers to this point in the season, which leads the league. Escobar’s 130 OPS+ this year is the highest of his career.

Dozier, meanwhile, picked a terrible time to have the worst season of his career. Two years ago, Dozier hit .268 with 42 homers. Last year, he knocked 34 homers with a .271 average. But in 2018, he has a .223 batting average with only 14 homers. His struggles at the plate are a part of the reason why the Twins haven’t played well this year. Of course, Miguel Sano and Byron Buxton have struggled at the plate as well, which hasn’t helped either.

Where could Escobar and Dozier fit with the Crew?

Escobar primarily plays third base for the Twins. But he can also play shortstop and second base if needed. Given the presence of Travis Shaw, if Escobar were to join the Crew, he would be pushed to shortstop. Adding his bat to the middle infield this year would be a tremendous upgrade over the options the Brewers currently have.

Brian Dozier is an everyday second baseman. He’s been the starter at the keystone for the Twins for six years now. If he joins the Brewers, that’s where he would play. The last time he played a position other than second base was his rookie year in 2012 at shortstop.

What would it cost?

Both are rentals hitting free agency at the end of the year. They would be cheaper alternatives to Machado, and should David Stearns get tired of the Orioles’ insistence on including Corbin Burnes, he could move on to Plan B, which could be Escobar or Dozier.

One or two mid-level prospects could be enough to snag one of these two infielders. Escobar has a better bat this year and provides versatility, which could make him the more attractive option of the two.

Next: How did Corbin Burnes do in his MLB Debut

The Milwaukee Brewers will be connected to a lot of names over the next couple weeks. A lot won’t end up amounting to much, but some will. And we never know which rumor will come true.