Milwaukee Brewers Rumors: Robbie Ray Interests Crew

The Milwaukee Brewers are known to be in need of pitching heading into the July Trade Deadline. And they’re casting a wide net in their search.

It should surprise no one that the Milwaukee Brewers are rumored to be connected to various starting pitchers on the trade market. The latest one of them is Robbie Ray from the Diamondbacks, per Jon Morosi.

Previously, the Brewers have been rumored to be interested in Noah Syndergaard, Will Smith, and Zack Wheeler. With Wheeler now on the IL and Syndergaard unlikely to be dealt unless the Mets get an “overwhelming” offer, Ray appears to be the next target on the list.

Ray is due to have a number of suitors, being on a team that’s pretty much out of the playoff race and having a year and a half of team control remaining, this is the best time to maximize Ray’s value if you’re Arizona. The Milwaukee Brewers love getting players with team control, and Ray fits their mold perfectly.

Robbie Ray In 2019

Ray had a breakout season in 2017, pitching to a 2.89 ERA in 28 starts as a 25 year old left-hander. He was an All-Star that year and finished 7th in the NL Cy Young voting.

Last year, Ray regressed to a 3.93 ERA, and this year has been a little bit better with a 3.81 ERA in 20 starts so far. The biggest difference between his 2017 season and the past two years has been his walk rate, which has jumped up considerably. It’s down a little bit to 4.5 BB/9 this year from the career high of 5.1 BB/9 last season, but he does lead the league in walks allowed.

He’s still striking out close to 12 batters per nine innings and has been healthy this year, which is important.

Ray doesn’t induce much soft contact, with both his medium- and hard-hit rates at 40% this year. But he does get mostly ground balls, which works better if he’s making his starts at Miller Park. Fly ball pitchers tend to not have as much success here.

What Would Ray Cost?

How about a Ray for Ray deal? Corey Ray is back healthy in the minors and there isn’t really a spot for him on the big league roster. He could work as a headliner for Robbie Ray. It obviously will take more than that, but someone needs to headline and it won’t be Keston Hiura.

Perhaps Mauricio Dubon will be of interest to Arizona as well. They’d probably also like a pitcher or two in return. Trey Supak and Zack Brown are two names that could make sense in a package for Ray as well.

My guess would be a three player package for Ray, depending on the quality of the prospects in return, it could be two or four either. It really depends on if the Diamondbacks want to go for quality or quantity as they go through a semi-retooling phase.

Rumor season is a fun time, and the Milwaukee Brewers, despite their recent slide, are going to be buyers and will be right in the thick of almost every trade rumor this July. Buckle up, folks.