Milwaukee Brewers: Is Mike Minor their best option?

The Toronto Blue Jays dealt Marcus Stroman to the New York Mets for prospects. Stroman was viewed as one of the more realistic rotation upgrades for the Milwaukee Brewers at the trade deadline. Should the team shift attention to Mike Minor?

The New York Mets are six games out of the Wild Card and a mile out of the NL East, but they still traded for Marcus Stroman. Now that Stroman is essentially off the board, does Mike Minor make sense for the Milwaukee Brewers as a rental?

He just might be the answer to the sudden lack of depth the Brewers have in their starting five.

How’s Minor pitching this year?

Really well! Minor owns a 3.00 ERA in 135 innings. In 21 starts for the Texas Rangers, Minor has racked up an 8-6 record with 136 strikeouts, 46 walks allowed, and 19 homers surrendered.

He’s averaging 92.8 MPH on his fastball this year. That’s about the same as he was last year. His change up has been on point for most of the 2019 season, and currently grades out as his best secondary offering.

Did that say 19 homers in 21 starts?

It did. Homers have been an issue for Minor this year, but his HR:FB ratio is at 13.3% this year. His career average is 10.8%. He’s also posting a 40.1% fly ball rate this season. His career average is 41.4%. Minor is allowing slightly fewer fly balls this year, but more are reaching the bleachers than usual. There is some concern with his 36.3% hard contact rate, but he strikes out enough batters that he can pitch over hard hit balls.

Does he want to get traded?

It’s hard to tell if he was trying to work the reporters or not, but it sounds like he’s surprised the Rangers signed him to trade him. He has a 10-team no-trade list, but it’s unknown if the Milwaukee Brewers are on it or not.

What kind of package would it take to get Minor?

Minor is signed through 2020, but given the underwhelming package the Blue Jays got for Stroman, it won’t take a ridiculous offer for the Milwaukee Brewers to pry Minor from the Rangers.

Pairing a couple of arms from the mid-range of the Milwaukee Brewers top 30 should be more than enough to add Minor to a rotation in need of reinforcements. Think more Marcos Diplan and Adam Hill than Aaron Ashby and Zack Brown. Holding on to the top three or four arms in the system shouldn’t be a challenge in this case.

Minor is a capable veteran who would add much needed depth to the Milwaukee Brewers rotation. He’s also healthy, and having a solid season. He won’t be the ace the team has been searching for, but he’s a solid option who wouldn’t look out of place starting a game or two in a seven-game playoff series.