Brewers Make Surprise First Free Agent Signing Of Offseason

The World Series confetti has barely stopped falling and Brewers president of baseball operations David Stearns has already made his first move of the offseason.

Shortly before noon on Wednesday, Ken Rosenthal reported the Milwaukee Brewers had signed RHP Trevor Gott to a major league contract for the 2022 season.

Gott spent all of last season in Triple-A and elected free agency on October 4th, meaning the five day exclusive negotiation window that major league free agents go through after the World Series concludes doesn’t apply here.

Who is Trevor Gott and why did the Milwaukee Brewers sign him to a major league deal?

Gott, 29, is a right-handed reliever that has been up and down throughout his career. He’s spent parts of six seasons in the big leagues, the most recent being in 2020 when he posted a 10.03 ERA in 15 appearances.

In 2019, Gott had a more respectable 4.44 ERA in 50 appearances with 57 Ks and 17 BBs.

However, in 2021 the Giants put Gott down in Triple-A for the entire season and he did okay, pitching to a 4.10 ERA in 43 games with 53 Ks and 16 BBs. His overall numbers don’t seem spectacular and he’s out of minor league options.

Clearly, the Brewers saw something in his performance, whether it be improved velocity or improved secondary pitches or something they think they can fix, that led them to offer Gott a major league contract. He’s going to be an option for Craig Counsell in the bullpen next year.

With veterans Hunter Strickland and Brad Boxberger hitting free agency, the Brewers have a few holes in their bullpen to plug, and it looks like Gott is going to be one of those options to fill those holes.

While the salary details weren’t immediately known for Gott, he won’t be an expensive option. He’ll certainly cost less than what it would be to re-sign Strickland or Boxberger, although reunions with those players are not out of the question.

Milwaukee spent most of 2021 short on bullpen depth, and the addition of Gott should help prevent that from happening in 2022. However since he is out of options, Gott will need to stay in the big league bullpen or he’ll be designated for assignment like he was by the Giants in 2021.

The Brewers see something they like in Gott, and they went out and signed him. You can never have enough pitching depth, and this won’t be the last bullpen signing the Brewers make this offseason.