Brewers fulfill Aaron Civale's trade request by sending him to one of worst destinations

Less than 24 hours ago, Milwaukee Brewers' starting pitcher, Aaron Civale, requested to be moved to a better situation where he could continue to work as a starting pitcher. Civale had been relegated to the bullpen for what was presumably going to be a long relief role — something he has never done throughout his career — in order to make room for the arrival of Jacob Misiorowski, who, in case you missed it, pitched pretty well last night. Now, less than a day later, the Brewers have found a trade partner in the Chicago White Sox, and Civale will get his wish to remain as a starting pitcher, albeit with the American League's loss leader, as reported by MLB insider Jon Heyman.

Civale joins Adrian Houser and Shane Smith, two starting pitchers with connections to the Brewers, in the White Sox rotation that also includes Davis Martin and Sean Burke. Jonathan Cannon, another starting option for the White Sox, is currently 12 days into a stint on the 15-day IL with a lower back strain. Regardless, Civale will get his wish to start, and should he continue to pitch as he has since returning from the IL with a hamstring injury, he could be looking at a significant payday when free agency rolls around this offseason. At just 30 years old, with more than six years of MLB experience, Civale should be an intriguing option for any team this offseason, and will almost certainly earn a multi-year deal.

Brewers acquire Andrew Vaughn from the Chicago White Sox in exchange for Aaron Civale and cash

The Brewers didn't come up empty-handed in this trade either. In addition to finding a better situation for one of their starting pitchers, they acquired a change-of-scenery candidate in first baseman Andrew Vaughn.

Vaughn is in the midst of his worst season in MLB, but he has been a solid bat in years past. At 27 years old, he's spent his entire professional career in the White Sox organization, including the last five seasons with the big league ball club. Vaughn has been about a league-average hitter or slightly better for the last three seasons, with his best years coming in 2022-23 when his OPS hovered around .750. But this season he's off to a slow start, slashing just .189/.218/.314 with 43 strikeouts and just seven walks in 48 games played.

Defensively, while Vaughn does have past experience in the outfield, he has only manned first base for the last two seasons. The Brewers are currently stacked at first base not only in the majors but also in Triple-A, with both Ernesto Martinez Jr. and Tyler Black getting starts at the cold corner for the Nashville Sounds, so it's possible the Brewers try Vaughn in the outfield, as they did with fellow change-of-scenery candidate Bobby Dalbec.

Vaughn still has three minor league options remaining, so don't expect him in a Brewers uniform any time soon, but he does offer a high-upside bat in the upper levels of the minor leagues for the time being, and could fill in at first base for the Crew next season should he find his swing again.

The last component of this trade is the financial side of it. Civale is owed slightly more money than Vaughn is for the rest of the season, so it's likely that the money included by the Brewers in the deal was to even things out. If that is the case, the Brewers are simply trading half a year of Civale for a year and a half of Vaughn. Time will tell, but in the meantime, Civale gets his wish fulfilled, and the Brewers can put the situation behind them.