Milwaukee Brewers: 5 Prospects On The Trade Block This July

The Milwaukee Brewers are without a doubt going to be buyers when it comes to the July trading deadline. That means some prospects are likely going to be sent out.

It’s just a matter of time before Milwaukee Brewers GM and President of Baseball Operations David Stearns makes some trades ahead of the July 31 hard trade deadline. It’s the first time we’ll have that hard deadline without the waiver period in August. So his approach might be different than in previous years.

Regardless, the Brewers will be buyers this July and will likely look to address the pitching staff and perhaps add a bench player, but other than that most of the positions can be handled in house. It’s not too early to look at potential trade targets either.

But pitching can be expensive to acquire in July, especially with such a high demand for it every year. The Brewers have several prospects in their farm system that will be intriguing to other teams and could get sent to other organizations. Here are five most likely to get the call that they’re joining a new team.

Corey Ray, OF, Triple-A

Currently, Corey Ray is on the IL in Triple-A, but he’s a Top 100 prospect that had a breakout 2018 season. He’s a near-MLB ready outfielder that has a rare power-speed combination that teams covet.

When he’s healthy, as he was in 2018, he can be fantastic. When he’s battling through injuries, his numbers drop significantly, however. This year he’s been battling some injuries and is hitting just .178/.259/.287 in only 25 games.

That could obviously drop his trade value a little bit, but the flash we saw out of a healthy Ray last year could still give him enough value in the eyes of other teams to match the value the Brewers have on him.

The Milwaukee Brewers are set in the outfield for the next couple of years and Ray won’t push through, at least not soon. When he returns healthy, he could help a rebuilding MLB club. The Giants have been in desperate need of outfielders for a while now, and he could be that centerfielder they build their outfield around.

There are a few trade targets on the Giants the Brewers would likely have interest in. Madison Bumgarner and Will Smith are two that come to mind. Although if you ask most Brewers fans, they would much rather see Smith come back than have Bumgarner come in. I don’t think the Brewers would trade Ray straight up for Smith, who’s a rental, but we’ll see.

Mauricio Dubon, 2B/SS, Triple-A

I don’t think that July is the best time to trade Mauricio Dubon away. I think he’s much more likely to get traded in the offseason when they can get a full market for his services, but there is a solid chance he gets dealt in July.

When the Milwaukee Brewers called up Keston Hiura instead of Dubon, it seemed pretty telling of what the situation was between the two players. Dubon, who had been waiting in Triple-A for nearly two seasons and was pretty much MLB ready to start the season, had been passed by Hiura.

If an opening pops up at second base the rest of the year, Hiura will get the call, not Dubon. Only if Orlando Arcia gets hurt will we see Dubon, in all likelihood, at this point. He’s dropped down on the organizational depth chart behind Hiura.

He’s still ready and deserving of a shot to play in MLB, and he could play for most big league clubs right now. But he’s in Triple-A and hasn’t gotten a shot with the Brewers yet.

This year, Dubon is hitting .290/.329/.436 with eight home runs, 27 RBIs, and five stolen bases. He’s still playing well and appears to have bounced back from his ACL injury. The power surge has continued for Dubon and he’s still hitting at a great clip.

He can play shortstop, and he can hit, and that’s an extremely valuable prospect at the July trade deadline. Not to mention he can jump into the big leagues tomorrow, and being MLB ready makes him that much more valuable to inquiring MLB teams.

I don’t think this is the best time to trade Dubon, but long term I don’t think Dubon is sticking with the Brewers, as unfortunate as that is. But Keston Hiura has taken Dubon’s long term home and Dubon getting snubbed for Hiura instead is a sign that Dubon could be on his way out sooner rather than later.

Marcos Diplan, RHP, Double-A

The Milwaukee Brewers will be selling low on Marcos Diplan should they trade him, but his value probably won’t be increasing any time soon.

While Diplan is on the 40 man roster, he’s still in Double-A and just got moved from the rotation to the bullpen. That immediately decreases his upfront value. Diplan has struggled again this year, pitching to a 5.57 ERA so far in 2019. He’s walking way too many hitters and his control just hasn’t improved from year to year.

Whatever the Brewers have been trying with him, hasn’t been working. Even the move to the bullpen hasn’t improved his performance much.

However, Diplan is still just 22 years old and there’s a lot of potential in that right arm. Perhaps another team thinks they can help him figure out where the baseball is going and straighten him out. Diplan can sit in the mid-90s and can likely hit upper-90s out of the bullpen. He’s got a live arm that just needs a little control.

While Diplan no longer has the upside of a potential starting pitcher, he could be a fireballer out of the bullpen in the late innings.

Don’t be surprised to see Diplan’s name thrown out there during trade rumors in July. He’s still got some value, and the Brewers would be wise to cash in on that remaining value while he still has it. They did that last year with Luis Ortiz in the Jonathan Schoop deal (although acquiring Schoop backfired, yes I know).

Trent Grisham, OF, Double-A

The Milwaukee Brewers selected Trent Grisham in the middle of the first round in 2015. He played well in Rookie ball after being signed in 2015, but followed that with three straight seasons of mediocrity from 2016-18.

He’s back in Double-A in 2019 and he’s playing a lot better. After posting a .228 batting average over the past three seasons combined, this year he has a .262 batting average with a .897 OPS and 13 home runs. Grisham had 17 homers combined over the last three seasons in what could be a breakout year.

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Grisham is finally showing flashes of that potential the Brewers saw in him four years ago when they drafted him. This is a make-or-break season for Grisham and he appears to be making it. But, as an outfielder, Grisham is stuffed way down on the depth chart and there are a lot of outfielders ahead of him.

But he’s starting to realize his potential and his value is trending upwards. After three straight seasons getting little offensive production out of Grisham, this seems like the perfect time to trade him. His value hasn’t been this high since they drafted him four years ago.

The Milwaukee Brewers had some whiffs in the early rounds of the draft during the early-mid 2010s. Grisham for the longest time looked like one of those whiffs, and he might still be. His numbers this year are not eye-popping, they aren’t stellar, but they are much better than what we’ve seen out of him.

Perhaps he’s built up his value high enough for another team to want to take him and give him a chance in their organization. There are just too many outfielders ahead of him with a better track record to warrant protecting him from the Rule 5 Draft on the 40 man roster this winter, and he is eligible to be selected in December.

So trading him now and getting something for him makes more sense than losing him for nothing in December.