Brewers: 3 Players Most Likely to be Traded This Season

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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.

Lorenzo Cain

This one hurts to write. Lorenzo Cain is universally loved by fans, media, and teammates alike. However, the current structure of baseball makes it a business, and business decisions are not always the most popular ones made.

The Brewers have been open to hearing offers on Lorenzo Cain in the past, and it appears that continues to this point. Jackie Bradley Jr is still out on the market, and the Brewers have been linked to JBJ. That creates a backlog in the outfield, as the Brewers would have to find playing time for an MVP, and two other Gold Glove winners.

Even without an addition of Jackie Bradley Jr, Lorenzo Cain appears to be a potential trade candidate. While he is older (turning 35 in April), and is owed $35 million over the next two seasons, he still provides immense value and elite defense.

Lorenzo Cain continues to be an elite defender, but with a hefty contract remaining, could he find himself traded at some point this season?

Cain would almost certainly have a smaller market than Hader would, given his contract situation, and the positional needs of most teams. Despite that, teams like the Mets, who missed out on George Springer, might be interested, and in a position to absorb that salary. Another team that may have some interest is Houston, who is looking to replace George Springer.

As opposed to Hader, who would bring in prospects, or multiple young players with years of team control, any trade involving Cain would likely be more along the lines of a salary dump. After the 2020 fiscal year, with no fans, and uncertainty about how many fans, if any, will be allowed into stadiums, teams are looking for ways to save money, and seeing Lorenzo Cain traded may be one way to do that.

Lorenzo Cain appears to be fired up and ready to go for 2021. He, like so many others, is in the best shape of his life, he should be back to patrol the outfield in the newly minted American Family Field, while still providing a solid presence in the lineup.

There is no imminent feeling of a trade involving Cain on the horizon, and he hopefully will remain a healthy contributor in Milwaukee.

Avisail Garcia

Avisail Garcia is back for his second season in Milwaukee, and looking to shake off his first year struggles. To do that, Garcia has lost 36 pounds, and looks like a new man. Garcia has multiple things going for him in 2021 that should make it a better season than 2020. Besides the weight loss, Garcia is shifting back to right field, where he was signed to play.

Right field is a much less physical position than center field is, especially with the extra poundage Garcia was playing with last year, which should benefit him. Without having the additional physical strain that manning center field brings Garcia will hopefully be able to rebound offensively.

Garcia made far less hard contact than he did at any point in his career. His barrel percentage plummeted to 3.8%, down from 11.7% in 2019. His expected statistics plummeted also, far below his career norms. That is no guarantee he will bounce back, but typically players do not fall off a cliff that severe at such a young age.

Avisail Garcia is looking to rebound after a tough 2020 season. Is there any chance that instead of returning to form in Milwaukee, he ends up traded to a new team?

Looking at the finances, Garcia is in the final guaranteed year of his 2 year/ $20 million contract signed back in the 2019 offseason, but Garcia does have a $12 million club option for 2022.

When looking at who is a more attractive outfield target, Garcia has less guaranteed money, and is younger than Lorenzo Cain. That combination of age and cost may make him a more attractive target for some teams, just by the fact that if they acquire him and he struggles, Garcia is a free agent at the end of the season, and teams are not committing long term to him.

Will any of these players be traded? No one knows for sure. There is no way to know what David Stearns is thinking at any given time, he keeps his cards close to the chest, and there are very few leaks giving insight to the direction the club is headed in.

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All that is known for sure is that David Stearns and the rest of the Front Office aren’t afraid to make moves that they believe will help the team in the long run.

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