The Milwaukee Brewers (23-38) have been unable to regain the ground they lost in April, even after switching managers in early May. As a result, they're likely to be sellers at the trade deadline and it's becoming more and more clear who they'd be willing to deal.
Jon Heyman of CBS Sports released his latest edition of Inside Baseball earlier today and it focused on the top 40 trade candidates for the 2015 MLB season. Heyman listed 11 members of the Brewers in his article and the top two names are among the club's marquee players: outfielders Carlos Gomez and Ryan Braun.
"As of today, only the predictably dreadful Phillies, the Braves, who are decent but eminently realistic and thinking long-term, and probably the struggling Brewers, who have been playing the middle many years in a row and may be overdue to reload, fall into the categories of seller or almost certain seller," writes Heyman.
Gomez has been long considered one of the more intriguing pieces the Brewers have. He's an athletic outfielder that can hit for power and steal bases (despite his down year so far this season) and he's signed on for $9 million in 2016. If the Brewers are considering a sale, Gomez is viewed as their top trade chip because he can yield them an appreciable return.
"Milwaukee has said it's very unlikely to trade star catcher Jonathan Lucroy or shortstop Jean Segura, but Gomez makes more than a little money and will almost surely leave via free agency after next year," Heyman wrote. "'He'd be a huge piece,' one rival GM said -- though of course, it'd have to be a team that needs a center fielder or would consider moving its center fielder to left."
ESPN Insider Buster Olney weighed in on the matter earlier this week.
"Rival evaluators wonder if they'll be open to seriously discussing a swap of center fielder Carlos Gomez, shortstop Jean Segura and others with trade value."
Segura has been floated around in trade rumors with the New York Mets, but the two sides would have to work out a considerable deal for that to come to fruition.
Another name that possesses value is Braun. The veteran is dealing with a thumb issue right now, but he's managed to maintain a .510 slugging percentage and an .849 OPS with 13 home runs and 41 RBIs this season. Heyman notes Braun remains a liability and teams could be "scared to death of the PR and the contract," but there's demand for power-hitting outfielders and Braun is among the best when healthy.
"I'd think they most certainly would," Todd Rosiak of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel said in regard to the Brewers trading Braun if they found a suitor. "But because of the money he's owed - his extension doesn't even kick in until next season - it's highly unlikely unless the Brewers would agree to eat some of it. Their trading partners would also most certainly be limited to big-market teams, and there would likely be questions regarding his thumb as well as the past PED issues."
Heyman previously discussed the risk in acquiring Braun in early May as well.
Because the outfield is generally an expendable position, it's no surprise Gomez and Braun could be placed on the trading block. Additionally, the Brewers have Gerardo Parra and Khris Davis to pick up the slack if one was traded and the club also has top prospects Tyrone Taylor, Kyle Wren, Victor Roache and Michael Reed, all of whom could hit the MLB in the next season or two.
A lot of questions surround the Brewers and they'll be answered within the next month and a half.
