Brewers: 3 Players Most Likely to be Traded This Season

Brewers president of baseball operations David Stearns has never been afraid to make trades.

He explores any and all options that he feels can improve the club. It has previously been reported that essentially any player other than Christian Yelich is up for trade, even though players like Keston Hiura or Corbin Burnes have little chance of being moved. Who could be traded in 2021?

Josh Hader

Josh Hader has been involved in trade rumors for what seems like years. He has been the most dominant reliever in baseball for the past three seasons, and all signs indicate he will continue to be just that in 2021.

Under the current system, Hader is under team control for 3 more seasons, and is making $6.675 million this year. That is a reasonable price for such an elite pitcher, however, for teams that are fiscally constrained by their market size, such as the Brewers are, that price tag may be too much to justify.

Hader remains the best left-handed reliever in the game. Could this finally be the season the Brewers trade him?

Josh Hader is one of the few players in the game that would improve any and every team he is a part of. The obvious suitors are the Padres, the White Sox, the Dodgers, and other teams such as the Yankees and Phillies could also be among those most interested in making a deal.

The old adage is to trade from a position of strength for a position of weakness. The Brewers bullpen is shaping up to be the among the best in the game, and one of their glaring weaknesses appears to be a long term solution at third base and first base. Keston Hiura is the latest player to take over first, but he is young and controllable, and great.

Assuming Hiura remains at first base, it appears a Hader trade would likely be for a third baseman or a pitching prospect, or both.

The Brewers still hold all the leverage in any potential Hader deal that may happen, and have every right to be as picky as they want to when screening offers. While his near $7 million salary may be more than the Brewers are comfortable committing, that is still a steal for such an elite reliever.

David Stearns has never been afraid to listen to offers on players, and Josh Hader is no exception. While the Brewers are still not actively shopping Hader, because of the immense interest and demand for elite pitching, Hader appears to be the most likely member of the roster to be traded.