Once the ace of the Milwaukee Brewers, starting pitcher Freddy Peralta has been on a journey of his own since being traded by the team that he debuted with back in 2018. After arguably the worst stretch of his career in 22 games with the New York Mets, Peralta was dealt to the Tampa Bay Rays, where he turned his season around for a team that ultimately found itself in the World Series.
Mostly, Milwaukee traded Peralta because they weren't prepared to spend what it would cost to keep him in unrestricted free agency this summer. But if he performs to the level he's capable of, Peralta could come back to bite the team that traded him away in a serious way on the biggest stage in baseball.
In three starts in these playoffs, Peralta has a stellar 1.13 ERA with 12 strikeouts and only two earned runs in 16 innings for Tampa Bay. The only home run he allowed in the playoffs was in the ALDS against the New York Yankees, hit by All-Star Ben Rice. However, not all is lost for the Brewers, as Peralta has allowed as many hits (12) as he has strikeouts (12) thus far in the postseason.
Nonetheless, the Brewers cannot afford to let Peralta get revenge against them for dealing him away right before their ascension to 100+ wins.
The Milwaukee Brewers need to get inside Freddy Peralta's head and break his hot streak in the World Series.
The narrative is almost scarier than the matchup when it comes to Freddy Peralta facing his former team. In fact, the relationship between the Brewers and their former pitcher has been quite endearing, with Peralta being cheered by Milwaukee's fans, players, and coaches alike in his lone start against the Brew Crew after being traded to the Mets.
Peralta struggled mightily against his former team, allowing eight hits, seven earned runs, and two homers in five innings back in July. However, a lot has changed for the 30-year-old since then, as he was then dealt from one of the worst teams in baseball to one of the best, with an elite defense to help bolster his stats.
It should be a fascinating and somewhat emotional matchup for both sides, because the Brewers and many of their fans still hold Freddy in high regard in their minds and hearts. Letting go of him in the first place was difficult, and there's certainly a place for him in the Brewers' starting rotation right now. But their elite bullpen and ace starters in Jacob Misiorowski and Logan Henderson have filled that void left by the two-time All-Star.
So, for better or worse, the fate of the Freddy Peralta trade will be decided this October. Who would've thought it?
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