Milwaukee Brewers: Grading the 2021-2022 Offseason Moves

Here are grades for each of the major Milwaukee Brewers’ 2021-2022 offseason moves.

2. Brewers trade for INF Mike Brosseau

It took just 10 more days before the Brewers made their first trade of the 2021-2022 offseason. On November 13th, Milwaukee traded minor league pitcher Evan Reifert to the Tampa Bay Rays for infielder Mike Brosseau.

Brosseau was coming off a rough 2021 season in which he slashed .187/.266/.347 in 57 games with the Rays. His prior two seasons were much better, though, as he slashed a combined .284/.343/.500 with 11 homers in 86 games and a 128 OPS+. He also had quite the memorable home run in a pivotal game five in the 2020 ALDS.

The Brewers gave up an intriguing pitching prospect in Reifert in the deal. The undrafted free agent was excellent in 2021, putting up a 2.10 ERA and a 1.200 WHIP with a whopping 103 strikeouts over just 60 innings across Low-A Carolina and High-A Wisconsin.

Still, it was a small price to pay, giving up a less-than-sure-thing minor league pitcher for a player with four years of control who will almost certainly play a utility role for the Brewers right away. And if Brosseau looks more like his 2019-2020 self than his 2021 version, it could turn out to be a steal of a trade.

Grade: B+

3. Brewers trade for RHP J.C. Mejia

Right as Thanksgiving was approaching, the Brewers pulled the trigger on another small-ish trade to improve their depth. On November 22nd, Milwaukee struck a deal with the Cleveland Guardians, bringing in right-hander J.C. Mejia for a player to be named later.

The 25-year-old Mejia has little MLB experience having just made his debut last season. In 17 games (11 starts), the righty put up a 8.25 ERA and a 1.605 WHIP while giving up 13 homers in 52 1/3 innings.

His career minor league numbers look much more solid, though, as he has a 3.12 ERA and 1.111 WHIP over 109 games. In 2019, he was ranked as the 16th best prospect in the Cleveland system by MLB Pipeline with his scouting report showing 55 grades for all four of his pitches.

Just recently, the player to be named later in the deal was, in fact, named as minor league catcher/infielder David Fry. The 26-year-old had solid numbers across Double-A Biloxi and Triple-A Nashville in 2021 (.255/.348/.449) and could be close to an MLB debut.

Mejia has a minor league option remaining, so the Brewers have a little more time to determine what they have in him. It’s a relatively low risk move to add pitching depth. But unlike the Brosseau trade, this move gives away a player with a higher likelihood of seeing major league time. Hopefully that doesn’t come back to bite Milwaukee.

Grade: C+

Here are grades for each of the major Milwaukee Brewers’ 2021-2022 offseason moves.

4. Brewers sign free agent C Pedro Severino

One area the Brewers were all but certain to address at some point in the offseason was at backup catcher. That became necessary when longtime Milwaukee backstop and fan-favorite Manny Pina signed a free agent deal with the Braves in mid-November.

It didn’t take the Brewers long to address that need. On November 29th, they signed a one-year contract with former Baltimore Orioles catcher Pedro Severino to a one-year deal.

After being claimed from the Washington Nationals before the 2019 season, Severino served as the starting catcher for the Orioles for most of the last three years. He has a career 362 games played across seven major league seasons, slashing .235/.305/.372 with 33 homers in that time.

The Brewers get a slight offensive upgrade with Severino but a definite downgrade in defense compared to Pina. Hopefully the Milwaukee coaching staff works wonders with him like they have other catchers in the organization recently, and if nothing else, he serves as a one-year stopgap until catching prospect Mario Feliciano is ready for a full-time major league job.

Grade: B

5. Brewers sign free agent C Brett Sullivan

Milwaukee wasn’t done there when it came to adding catching depth, though. Just one day later, the team agreed to a deal with another free agent catcher, this one being former Rays minor leaguer Brett Sullivan.

Prior to signing with the Brewers, Sullivan had spent his entire career in the Rays’ minor league system after being picked in the 17th round of the 2015 draft. In six seasons, he slashed .271/.317/.426 with 142 doubles and 58 homers in 593 games.

It’s not every day that you see a career minor leaguer added to a team’s 40-man roster, which is what the Brewers did. But Sullivan comes with all of his minor league options remaining, so there is no rush to bring him up to the majors before he is actually needed.

Sullivan also comes with some positional flexibility as he played some third base and outfield in the Rays organization. Combine that with his several years of control and multiple minor league options remaining, and it’s hard not to be happy with this extremely low risk move.

Grade: A-

Here are grades for each of the major Milwaukee Brewers’ 2021-2022 offseason moves.

6. Brewers trade for OF Hunter Renfroe

On December 1st, the day before the MLB lockout was set to begin and league operations would be shut down until well into the new year, Brewers president of baseball operations David Stearns had a last-second trick up his sleeve. And it was a big one.

The Brewers pulled off a shocker of a pre-lockout trade, receiving outfielder Hunter Renfroe from the Boston Red Sox for outfielder Jackie Bradley Jr and two prospects. Renfroe would be set to take over the starting right field spot from Avisail Garcia, who left in free agency.

Renfroe is coming off a career year where he slashed .259/.315/.501, slugged 31 homers, and had a career high 96 RBIs and 89 runs scored. He now gets to call American Family Field home, a stadium where he has had some success in the past (9 games, .303 average, 1.197 OPS, 5 HR, 11 RBIs).

Not only did the Crew find their right fielder of the future, but they also got out from under the contract of Bradley Jr, who was coming off the worst offensive season of his career. Though the Brewers will miss Bradley Jr’s defense, Renfroe is no slouch in the field himself.

Yes, the Brewers had to give up a couple top 30 prospects in David Hamilton and Alex Binelas. But considering it allowed Milwaukee to slightly upgrade a position and get a team to actually take Bradley Jr and his contract, it’s hard not to classify the move as a resounding win.

Grade: A

7. Brewers sign free agent RHP Brad Boxberger

Once the MLB lockout was finally over, one of the big positions the Brewers were still expected to address was the bullpen. While the additions of Gott and Mejia were nice, it still felt like Milwaukee need a little more firepower among the relief corps.

We looked at a number of potential relievers the Brewers could have targeted, and sure enough, one of them ended up being Milwaukee’s first post-lockout signing. That someone ended up being free agent Brad Boxberger, who on March 13th re-signed with the Crew on a one-year contract with a 2023 option.

Boxberger was one of the team’s top relievers in 2021, leading the team with 71 appearances and putting up a 3.34 ERA and a 1.067 WHIP with 11.6 strikeouts per nine innings. At $2.5MM, he isn’t isn’t particularly expensive, and if he has another solid year, the Brewers can opt to keep him for a third campaign with the team.

One could question whether the Brewers should have gone with another high-quality reliever on the free agent market instead of reuniting with one who turns 34 this season. But Boxberger put in a ton of quality work for them last year, and until he shows actual signs of decline, it makes sense to keep rolling with a winning formula.

Grade: B+

Here are grades for each of the major Milwaukee Brewers’ 2021-2022 offseason moves.

8. Brewers sign free agent OF/DH Andrew McCutchen

Arguably the biggest post-lockout question for the Brewers was what they were going to do at designated hitter now that the new CBA has brought it to the National League. Would they try to go with an internal option or make a move to bring someone in to man the position?

That question was answered on March 14th when Milwaukee made what currently stands as their final move of the offseason. That day, they agreed to a one-year deal with free agent outfielder, and now DH, Andrew McCutchen.

McCutchen comes to the Crew after three seasons with the Philadelphia Phillies. While his average dipped to a career low .222 last season, his 27 homers and 80 RBIs were his highest marks since 2017, numbers that will play well at DH, where the Brewers reportedly plan to use him in a majority of his games, though he can obviously back up in the outfield as well.

Once the most popular target in Nelson Cruz was off the market, there weren’t many other obvious DH options left that wouldn’t cost an arm and a leg. In McCutchen, the Brewers get to fill the position with a player with a proven offensive track record who happens to hit well in Milwaukee. That’ll play.

Grade: A-

So with all the moves combined, how does the overall grade for the Brewers’ 2021-2022 offseason shake out?

Overall Grade: B

The Brewers went into this last offseason needing to improve the offense and specifically address a few main positions, namely designated hitter, bullpen depth, and backup catcher. For the most part, they were successful.

On top of that, they were able to upgrade the right field position in a surprising trade and add to their utility depth with another swap.

A couple questions still remain. Will the players who were added be enough to improve the offense to a level worthy of a deep playoff run? Milwaukee added a few players to the bullpen mix, but could they have done more?

All-in-all, the Brewers did an above average job of fixing the spots that needed to be fixed. Could some of the moves have been better? Maybe. But this gives Milwaukee a good starting point for the 2022 season with some flexibility to still make moves after the season begins.

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Who knows, it’s possible the Brewers make one more move before spring training ends. But if they don’t, they’re as set to compete for a 2022 playoff run as anyone.