Brewers continue a busy week by making a trade with the Yankees for a first baseman
A busy off-season around the margins of their roster continues for the Milwaukee Brewers.
Ahead of the deadline for teams to tender contracts to arbitration-eligible players, the Brewers acquired first baseman-outfielder Jake Bauers from the New York Yankees in exchange for a pair of prospects, Jace Avina and Brian Sanchez.
"I obviously had some history with him from when I was in Tampa Bay," said general manager Matt Arnold. "He's the type of person that you want to bet on. Between his really good makeup and the power surge that we saw last year, we think there are a lot of ingredients to be excited about."
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Bauers, 28, is arbitration-eligible, and the Brewers tendered him a contract for 2024 that MLB Trade Rumors projects to be $1.7 million. He's also out of minor-league options, which, along with his guaranteed contract, would indicate that he will remain in the running at first base heading into spring training.
First base is as wide-open as any position for the Brewers currently with Rowdy Tellez having been non-tendered and Mark Canha having been traded to Detroit earlier this month.
Carlos Santana is also a free agent.
Prospect Tyler Black could be in the running among players currently in the organization, though it's also likely the Brewers continue to address the position.
Formerly a highly-regarded prospect who was ranked as the No. 45 prospect in baseball prior to 2018 while in the Rays system, Bauers has hit just .211 with 39 home runs and a .663 OPS across 412 games in the majors.
Across 199 games between 2021-23 with the Guardians, Mariners and Yankees, Bauers has a slash line of .206/.285/.340 with 16 homers.
There remains some power potential in Bauers' bat. When he hits the ball he often squares it up, but he also struck out in nearly 35% of plate appearances last year.
Bauers split time between first base and the corner outfield spots with the Yankees but given the Brewers roster construction, first base and designated hitter seem to be the more reasonable spots for him moving forward.
"A guy that we had targeted as a left-handed bat with power," Arnold said. "He had 23 home runs between Triple-A and the big leagues last year, he's athletic and has really developed over the last 12 to 18 months. And, he's changed some things in his swing that we're excited about.
"He can play multiple positions -- first base, the outfield and DH as well. So, he's a really interesting bat that we're happy to have."
Avina is the headliner of the return for the Yankees. Taken in the 14th round of the 2021 draft out of high school, the Brewers signed Avina away from his college commitment.
He was the Arizona Complex League MVP in 2022 for posting a .436 OBP and .630 slugging percentage. Light-tower power is his calling card to go along with a selective eye at the plate, and he has a .869 career OPS in the minors after spending all of 2023 at Class A Carolina.
Avina also has major swing-and-miss concerns in his game, and some scouts wonder if he will be able to overcome the type of profile that generates a 30% strikeout rate at Class A.
"A talented player," said Arnold of Avina. "Very talented and young. A lot of upside. We're certainly happy with Bauers, but we think Avina has a bright future as well."
Sanchez, 19, signed with Milwaukee as a non-drafted free agent last February and played in the Dominican Summer League, where he hit .297 with a .414 OBP in 33 games.
Brewers sign pair of minor-league pitchers
In a final bit of business on Friday night, the team announced it had signed minor-league pitchers Jared Koenig and Enoli Paredes and extended them invitations to spring training.
Koenig, who turns 30 on Jan. 24, is a left-hander who made his major-league debut this past season with the Oakland A's. In 10 appearances (five starts), he went 1-3 with a 5.72 ERA and WHIP of 1.40 while striking out 22 in 39 ⅓ innings.
Paredes, 24, made 37 relief appearances for the Houston Astros between 2020-22, going 3-3 with a 3.90 ERA and WHIP of 1.83. He struck out 37 in 32 ⅓ innings, surrendering only one home run.
This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: Brewers trade for Jake Bauers from Yankees for Jace Avina
