Do the Tampa Bay Rays hold the missing piece for the Milwaukee Brewers?

Milwaukee Brewers trade targets on the Tampa Bay Rays: Yandy Diaz

The Milwaukee Brewers are obviously in search of starting pitching, but having already acquired one from the Tampa Bay Rays, they're not likely to try to double dip on the same team and can look to fill that void elsewhere. That said, the first of two position players the Brewers could look to score from the Rays is Yandy Diaz.

Why would the Brewers be interested in Yandy Diaz?

Yandy Diaz could give the Brewers another trusted bat in their lineup, Diaz is slashing .272/.328/.394/.722. His .272 batting average would be fourth for the Brewers and his .328 on base percentage leaves a little to be desired but would still be eighth on the team.

Diaz has played primarily first base for the Tampa Bay Rays in 2024 but has nearly 300 games played at third base in his career as well and could always be used at DH should Gary Sanchez not perform to expectations after returning from injury.

Looking at some of Yandy Diaz's advanced stats, there is definitely reason to believe that he could improve on his numbers should he be brought to Milwaukee. Diaz has a .283 expected batting average, ranks in the 92nd percentile for average exit velocity and 90th percentile for hard hit percentage. Diaz can smack the ball around thanks to his 95th percentile rank in squared up contact and demonstrated by his maximum exit velocity of 117.4 miles per hour! That 117.4 mile per hour ground rule double was the hardest hit of his career.

Diaz also has good plate discipline, ranking in the 81st percentile for chase percentage, 89th percentile for strikeout percentage and 98th percentile for strikeout percentage. Diaz currently is "chasing" a career high 23.1 percent of pitches outside the zone, 3.1 percent above his career average but still 5.7 percent the Major League Baseball average. However, that's not all bad because Diaz is also making a career high 81.5 percent contact on pitches he chases (the MLB average is 57.0).

Yandy Diaz is 32 years old, making $8 million this season and is under contract for $10 million in 2025 and carries a team option for $12 million in 2026 so the money may not be ideal for the Brewers.