Brewers' recent trade addition clears waivers and will remain in organization

Ahead of their three-game series with the Pittsburgh Pirates last weekend, the Milwaukee Brewers made two changes to their roster. The first was a swap of long relievers -- Milwaukee replaced right-hander Carlos Rodriguez with left-hander Shane Drohan to add a fresh arm to their bullpen. The Brewers have cycled through long-relief options this year, with Rodriguez, Drohan, and Logan Henderson all earning brief stints in the role to this point. It was Drohan's turn in the rotation, but it's likely Rodriguez, and Henderson for that matter, rejoin the big-league club at some point this season.

The second roster move, however, was more significant, as it saw the Brewers designate outfielder Luis Matos for assignment to open an active roster spot for Tyler Black. In designating Matos for assignment, the Brewers exposed the former San Francisco Giant to waivers, where any team was free to claim and add him to their 40-man roster.

Matos was once a Top 100 prospect in MLB according to MLB Pipeline, and while he has yet to find success at the big-league level, the potential he once possessed could have intrigued another club and led to them adding the 24-year-old outfielder to their roster.

However, as announced by the Brewers earlier today, Matos went unclaimed and will instead remain in Milwaukee's organization but without his spot on the 40-man roster. He's been outrighted to Triple-A, where he will join the Nashville Sounds and try to tap into the potential that once made him a top prospect in the sport.

No longer taking up a 40-man roster spot, Luis Matos could be an interesting project in the Brewers' farm system

As a member of the Brewers' major-league squad, Matos struggled mightily. Though he earned just 21 plate appearances, the young outfielder collected just four hits -- all singles -- struck out seven times, and didn't post a single RBI. He didn't swipe a single base and was mediocre defensively in the outfield corners.

However, in 2022, Matos possessed enough potential to be the No. 63-ranked prospect in all of MLB. Surrounding him on that list were names like Shea Langeliers (59), Gunnar Henderson (64), Michael Harris II (65), Michael Busch (67), Andy Pages (68), and Sal Frelick (70). At the time, Matos was coming off of two impressive seasons to start his minor league career, and, according to MLB Pipeline, owned "the best bat-to-ball skills" in the Giants' system.

That was four years ago, and in the time since, Matos, despite a quick ascension to MLB in 2023 when he was still just 21 years old, has not looked like the player the Giants once hoped he would be. He's been worth -0.9 bWAR, has a career OPS+ of 81, and has struggled to maintain an everyday role. His underlying metrics don't paint a much brighter picture either, but Matos is still just 24 years old.

The Brewers have "unlocked" former top prospects before, and perhaps they can do the same with Matos as well. He's shown flashes of a productive major leaguer, and, up until this season, has always maintained admirable strikeout and whiff rates. Tapping into his bat-to-ball skills in the same way that other Brewers' former top prospects have, and relying on a high bating average on balls in play could be the key to Matos rewriting his major league story. With Matos no longer taking up a spot on the 40-man roster, he and the Brewers now have the freedom to tinker with his swing and approach and hope he meets his previous potential.

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