After Friday night’s home loss to the Miami Marlins (38-66), highlighted by another rough start from ace Freddy Peralta — 5 1/3 IP, 6 H, 3 ER, 5 R, 5 BB with two home runs allowed — the Milwaukee Brewers should feel a greater urgency to bolster their pitching staff before Tuesday’s trade deadline.
Milwaukee has already been rumored of seeking an arm at trade deadline due to numerous injuries. At this point in the season, they have used 16 different starting pitchers, the most in the MLB.
Chicago White Sox All-Star Garrett Crotchet has been a popular name on the market, but the demand for the left-hander may push his price too high for the Crew.
Here are three intriguing pitchers outside of Crochet who could be candidates to wear the blue and gold in just a couple of days:
Cal Quantrill | RHP, Colorado Rockies
In his first two full seasons with the Guardians in 2021-22, Quantrill built up a strong resume — going 8-3 with a 2.89 ERA in 22 starts in 2021 and 15-5 with a 3.38 ERA in 32 starts in 2022. A down year in 2023 sent him west to Colorado over the winter. While Coors Field is typically challenging for pitchers due to the high elevation, Quantrill has adapted well, regaining success with a 4.09 ERA in his 21 starts. Although he still isn’t known for striking out many batters, it’s conceivable that a team with a strong pitching coach staff might be interested in seeing what he can do in a more pitcher-friendly ballpark. He’s making just $6,550,000 this season, per Spotrac, making him an affordable arm.
Jack Flaherty | RHP, Detroit Tigers
Flaherty has had a bounce-back season of his own in his very impressive stint with the Tigers. In 18 starts this season, he has logged a 2.95 ERA with a K/BB ratio of 7.0 (133 strikeouts, 19 walks) with a strikeout rate of 32% across his 106 2/3 innings of work. Both statistics rank second in the American League. His one-year, $14-million contract is considered cheap when comparing cost to production, raising high attention among a lot of ballclubs.
Erick Fedde | RHP, Chicago White Sox
Pitching in the Korean Baseball Organization last year after struggling to maintain a starting role with the Washington Nationals in 2022, Fedde has steadied himself with the White Sox. Similar to Quantrill, Fedde doesn’t collect many strikeouts, (104 over 117 2/3 innings pitched), but is still very effective on the bump. His four-pitch mix cutter (30.4%), sinker (30.2%), sweeper (20%) and changeup (19.3%) has effectively limited hard contact, leading to many weak-contact outs. The even usage among the pitches makes it difficult for batters to sit on a specific offering, one of the major reasons he holds a 2.98 ERA on the season. Fedde is under contract through next season, having signeda two-year, $15 million contract in December.