Milwaukee Brewers: The Crew Made Some Moves

With the Milwaukee Brewers looking to make a late push for the playoffs, Stearns makes three impact moves to help Crew in September.

August 31st was the waiver deadline and the Milwaukee Brewers took advantage of it. Slinging Stearns made three deals throughout the day. First he traded for left handed relief pitcher Xavier Cedeno to bolster the bullpen. Then right before Friday’s matchup with the Nationals, Stearns acquired left handed starting pitcher Gio Gonzalez to add to the rotation. And to top it off, the Brewers added outfielder Curtis Granderson from the Toronto Blue Jays.

Xavier Cedeno

The first deal that happened this afternoon was with the White Sox and it was for Xavier Cedeno. This is the third deal in the last two years for a White Sox bullpen arm. It started last year with Anthony Swarzak. And now the Brewers added two more with Soria and Cedeno. The Brewers traded away LF Bryan Cornell and RHP Johan Dominguez. Both from rookie ball.

Cedeno has had a decent year. He got called up in the beginning of June and has been solid out of the ‘pen. His ERA is sitting just below three in 25 and a third innings pitched. He’s more of a two pitch pitcher. A fastball/cutter that sits in the low 90s and an offspeed in the low 80s. Cedeno will become the third lefty in the bullpen in addition to Hader and Jennings. He will add more depth and will help Counsell a lot when it comes to his strategy of playing matchup in tough situations.

Stats in 2018   2-0/1 SV/2.84/25.1 IP/28 K/.204 OPP AVG (.209 vs Lefties)

Gio Gonzalez

It may not be who the Brewers fans wanted, but the Crew finally got a starting pitcher. Stearns acquired left handed starter Gio Gonzalez and international slot money from the Nats for catching/infield prospect KJ Harrison and infield prospect Gilbert Lara. He will most likely go right into the rotation and take the spot of either Junior Guerra or Freddy Peralta.

Gonzalez has had success, but sadly, not this season. His record this season is 7-11 and his ERA is at around four and a half. This may look bad, but a change of scenery can do a lot for someone. Look at JA Happ, who got traded to the Yankees. Look at Cole Hamels who go traded to the Cubs. This is a good move and Gio will give the Crew quality innings and hopefully help them make that last push in the playoff race in September.

Stats in 2018   7-11/4.57 ERA/45.2 IP/126 K/.272 OPP AVG

Curtis Granderson

Stearns bolstered the offense right after the game and acquired veteran outfielder Curtis Granderson for outfield prospect Demi Orimoloye. This is an underrated move. With Moustakas, Cain and Granderson all on this team, there will be a huge veterans presence that has playoff experience that can help the Crew in the last month of the season.

Granderson has had a slightly below average season. His batting average is sitting at .245 and has hit 11 home runs in 302 AB for the Jays this season. This will also fill a void that has been missing this past month. A left handed bat off the bench. With Thames struggling, Granderson could fill that role and give the Crew quality at bats when it matters.

2018 Stats   .245(.310 in August)/11 HR/35 RBI/.342 OBS/.772 OPS in 302 AB

Review

David Stearns made moves in all the places that needed improvement. Xavier Cedeno helps a struggling bullpen and will take innings off the core three of Jeffress, Hader and Soria. Gio Gonzalez bolsters the rotation, which Brewers fans have been asking for for what seems like an eternity. And with Thames .098 batting average in the month of August, Granderson slides in and gives the Crew a quality outfielder, a great person in the clubhouse and a great bat off the bench.

David Stearns. Job well done.