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Trade Deadline Blues

With the trade deadline approaching, and one blockbuster already completed by the division rival Cubs, Brewers fans and analysts are vigorously debating prospective moves for the franchise. Milwaukee is in a great spot to make moves: the club sits atop the division with a 5.5 game lead, is in the midst of a ten game […]

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Update: Cashing Out OFP 2

Earlier this week, I examined the surplus added by Brewers GM David Stearns, which is undoubtedly one of the reasons the club is performing quite well. Stearns, in stark contrast to recently famous rebuilds in Chicago and his previous front office (Houston), is building competitive clubs at the MLB level by cashing in on short-term […]

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Surplus: Scalp or Spread

The Brewers are currently lead by a group of surprisingly valuable players, which is undeniably one of the reasons that the club remains steadily better than average. Entering Sunday’s game against the Dodgers, the Brewers’ top WARP belonged to: Eric Thames, nearly a handful of years removed from the MLB, previously a Korean Baseball Organization […]

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Bandy-Maldonado or Win-Win

It’s quite easy, at the moment, to appreciate Brewers GM David Stearns by heaping praise on the young front office executive’s trades. After all, the slinging one has seen a few of the Brewers’ prized veterans collapse or experience injuries after their departure from Milwaukee (perhaps Jonathan Lucroy and Tyler Thornburg most notable). Some of […]

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Selling While You’re Ahead

In just over a year at the helm as the Milwaukee Brewers’ general manager, David Stearns has shown an incredible ability to find value in places where no one thought to look. By buying low on Jonathan Villar, re-signing Hernan Perez, and betting against Keon Broxton’s strikeout problem, Stearns has accumulated assets without giving up […]

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Translating OFP

After seeing the scouting strengths and weaknesses, as well as the Overall Future Potential (OFP) and realistic floors, for the Brewers system, one can begin the New Year with a great sense of the “what if…?” that is the current state of the rebuilt farm system. There is no question that the Brewers front office […]

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Assessing Roster Moves IV: Prospect Value

In the previous installment of this series, a reader comment provided an excellent point about judging prospects: monetizing prospect value appears to inflate their potential value, compared to MLB players. That this should not be surprising does not diminish the salience of the point — analysts have much, much more information available about MLB players. Moreover, […]

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Grading Trades IV: Current Assets

The Brewers are in an intriguing position entering the 2016-2017 offseason: The club has one of the best farm systems, if not the best in terms of depth and top prospects, in the MLB. Milwaukee has extreme payroll flexibility in terms of guaranteed and arbitration contracts. While the front office was sorting through roster options […]