Brewers: 3 Relievers to Target on MLBTR’s Early Trade Candidate List

3. RHP Raisel Iglesias

Perhaps the Brewers would decide to go with a name that is a little more familiar to them. In this case, the name is not just familiar to Milwaukee fans, but all the other teams in the division as well.

Raisel Iglesias spent six years as one of the better relief arms in the National League Central division prior to 2020. But this past offseason, the Cincinnati Reds traded him to the Los Angeles Angels, mostly due to the $9.125MM he was set to make in 2021.

Though he started the season a little rough, Iglesias has been improving as the season has gone on. His ERA currently sits at 3.91 with his WHIP at a nice even 1.000 through 23 innings. He’s also picked up 10 saves in 12 opportunities as the Halos’ closer.

There are some concerns as his home run rate is at the highest it’s ever been (2.0 HR/9) and his hit rate is close to the same (7.8 H/9 vs 8.2 career high in 2019). But he has been causing batters to swing and miss at the plate at one of the best levels of his career.

Iglesias’ 13.3 K/9 is the highest mark of his career by a full strikeout per nine. Meanwhile his strikeout rate (37.4%) and whiff rate (41.6%), not to mention his miniscule walk rate (3.3%), all sit in the 97th percentile or higher per Baseball Savant.

As an added bonus, his familiarity with the NL Central could be a nice asset. It will be a fight to the finish for the division title and Iglesias has good career numbers against both the Cubs (3.46 ERA, 1.116 WHIP, .210 batting average against), and Cardinals (3.33/1.266/.204).

Just like the previous two candidates, Iglesias becomes a free agent after this season, so there are no worries about having to match a hefty price tag going forward.

Based on his track record, Stearns will almost certainly make a move for a reliever, assuming the Brewers stay competitive. Any of these three candidates would make a fine addition to the bullpen.