Brewers Rumors: Latest On Josh Hader Trade Talks

As we’ve gotten closer to the 2020 Trade Deadline, there have been more and more Brewers rumors surrounding Josh Hader.

Coming into the season, a lot of the things that have happened were not expected. From the offensive slumps by Christian Yelich, Keston Hiura, and everyone else on the offense to the struggles to win games, the Brewers find themselves in a tough spot. With the deadline coming up, Brewers rumors are swirling all over the place.

They might look to buy at the deadline, they might stand pat, or they might sell. The possibility of selling has been gaining some traction lately. Ken Rosenthal first reported on the Brewers rumors that they were listening on Josh Hader starting last week, but that the asking price was ridiculously high. No one expected a deal to come to fruition.

Has that changed?

Rumors Update On Hader Trade Talks

According to Bob Nightengale, it looks like there may be a shift in likelihood of a Josh Hader trade this deadline.

Keep in mind, this is Bob Nightengale and he’s been wrong before, so take his report with a few grains of salt.

But if there’s a “growing sentiment” that Hader could be traded, that means there would have been some traction in trade talks with somebody or multiple somebodies. We know the Padres were one team that had interest in Hader and were involved in talks for him, however their recent acquisition of Trevor Rosenthal likely takes them out of the sweepstakes.

So who else is reportedly interested?

The perennial thorn in the side of the National League, the Los Angeles Dodgers are also among the teams looking at Hader. They’re also one of the teams that has the prospect/player capital to be able to afford Hader.

However, watching Hader lock games down for the Dodgers for the next few years after they’ve already been good for so long would just be painful to watch for Brewers fans.

What could ease that pain is the potential return for Hader. The top prospect the Dodgers have is Gavin Lux, who is a former first round pick, the No. 2 prospect in all of baseball, and most importantly, a Wisconsin native. Getting a hometown kid who grew up in Kenosha on the Brewers, and he’s a very good player would be a huge coup for David Stearns.

Lux would probably have to headline that trade, but the chances of the Dodgers actually being willing to part with him still appear to be slim.

Any other teams involved? At least one more known team.

Robert Murray reports the Yankees are another team that has interest in Josh Hader, which shouldn’t be surprising. They have a strong farm system, a strong big league team, and they were interested in trading for him last winter. Aroldis Chapman isn’t who he once was and they could use a bullpen addition and the Yankees have been known to go big.

Murray also threw some cold water on Nightengale’s earlier report that there was a growing sentiment Hader would be traded. Murray reported that talks haven’t progressed much. The Brewers will continue to listen, but until Stearns hears a team match his asking price, he’s not going to make the trade.

There are several high profile teams that are interested in Hader and they have some strong farm systems to draw from. Whether they’re willing to meet the price the Brewers set will make the difference between Hader staying put or getting traded.

*Update*: The Phillies and the Twins are two other teams who have been connected to Hader trade talks, although there has been no indication that traction was gained in talks with either team.

The Brewers sit at 15-17 and with expanded playoffs are in good position to at least play in October.  Brewers rumors will continue to swirl for the next day and a half.