Brewers: 5 Moves From 2021 That Didn’t Work Out as Planned

Brewers #1 Move That Didn’t Work Out in 2021: Trading for Daniel Norris

While some fans might think Bradley Jr is deserving of the #1 spot on this list, at least he was useful to the team on the defensive end, not to mention as an asset in the aforementioned trade. The same can’t be said of our actual #1.

Daniel Norris was another reliever that the Brewers added at last year’s trade deadline in an attempt to improve the team’s bullpen depth. Milwaukee only had to give up a low-level pitching prospect and Norris had the added bonus of bringing another left-handed arm into the fold.

Fans questioned the move early. Norris had a 5.89 ERA in 38 games with the Tigers up to that point as well as a 1.445 WHIP. He was on a bit of a run in July, giving up just three runs over his last 8 1/3 innings, but would that hold true?

It would not.

Things got even worse for Norris as a member of the Brewers. He would give up 15 earned runs over 20 1/3 innings (6.64 ERA) with a 1.574 WHIP and 18 strikeouts to 15 walks. He gave up runs in 7 of the 18 games in which he appeared for Milwaukee (38.9%).

Unsurprisingly, Norris was left off of the Brewers’ postseason roster. He was already set to become a free agent after the season, thus his Milwaukee tenure came to an unceremonious end.

Not every move over the course of a baseball season can work out exactly as planned. What’s important is to balance them out with even more moves that do.