JR RadcliffeMilwaukee Journal Sentinel
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The Milwaukee Brewers trade for William Contreras continues to look like highway robbery.
Milwaukee gave up outfield prospect Esteury Ruiz after the 2022 season as part of a three-way deal with Oakland and Atlanta, bringing in Contreras (who has started the season like an MVP candidate) and Joel Payamps (one of the team's most trusted bullpen arms) along with minor-leaguer Justin Yeager, who has four saves at Class AA Biloxi this year.
Ruiz only spent a brief time in Milwaukee, coming to the Brewers from San Diego as part of the Josh Hader trade in 2022. That trade was reviled at the time, though left-hander Robert Gasser is getting closer to contributing on the big-league level and Ruiz, as noted, became the centerpiece of a trade that might go down as one of the best in club history.
More: These former Brewers and Wisconsin natives are on opening-day rosters in Major League Baseball
So how is Ruiz doing? What about Hader? Here's what to know about a handful of intriguing ex-Brewers:
Esteury Ruiz has great numbers … but he's barely played for Oakland this year.
The biggest asset Ruiz had was speed, and he showed it when he stole a league-leading 67 bases for the A's last year. But he also posted a .654 OPS and only reached base at a .309 clip.
This year, those numbers are much better, with an eye-popping 1.089 OPS, a .393 on-base mark and even two homers among four extra-base hits. But there's a caveat; that's only been in 10 big-league games and 29 plate appearances heading into the weekend. Ruiz spent two weeks back in the minor leagues and has only started seven games in the first month of the season.
Ruiz has to prove he can play a solid defense, but he's still just 25 years old and the small sample has to be encouraging. Presumably, he'll get more chances to play if those numbers continue.
Josh Hader has had a really rough start with Houston, and so have the Astros in general
Hader hasn't pitched in a week heading into the weekend, and it's been a struggle when he has. All told, he's allowed nine earned runs this year in 9⅔ innings (an 8.38 ERA), with 16 strikeouts and five walks. It's still a small sample for a reliever, but his WHIP (1.655) is elevated and reminiscent of the worst stretches of his career.
But he barely gets chances because the Astros are a stunning 7-19, including a sweep at the hands of the Chicago Cubs during the week. All told, the Astros have lost five in a row and eight of nine games entering Friday.
Jesse Winker is lighting it up for Washington
Winker struggled mightily in Milwaukee last year, but it sure appears that he was still battling back from the effects of neck surgery the preceding offseason. In Washington, he's essentially the Nationals' second-best player offensively, with an .836 OPS, two homers and nine RBIs. After serving almost exclusively as a designated hitter for the Brewers last year, he's also playing games in left field for Washington.
Orlando Arcia is replicating his strong start from last year
Orlando Arcia, once the top prospect in the Brewers organization, was traded to Atlanta early in 2021, and he found something at age 28 that included a white-hot start to the 2023 season, leading to an appearance in the all-star game. His numbers tailed off in the second half, but he's back to a strong showing a year later, with a .302 batting average, a .775 OPS and a spot among the top defensive players in baseball on the early outs-above-average Statcast leaderboard.
The Braves are again looking like the best team in baseball, with a 17-6 record entering the weekend.
Mark Canha has been excellent for the Detroit Tigers
Midseason acquisition Mark Canha was a key contributor to the Brewers down the stretch last year, and he's continued solid play with the Detroit Tigers, to whom he was traded in the offseason. Canha has a .912 OPS, with five homers already — matching his total in Milwaukee over double the plate appearances last year — plus 14 RBIs.
Adrian Houser hasn't found a groove with the Mets, although Tyrone Taylor has
Houser, a member of the Brewers organization since 2015 and a fixture in the rotation the past five seasons, was dealt to the New York Mets in the offseason and has labored in his new home, with a 7.45 ERA and a 1.759 WHIP in four starts. He's allowed 20 hits and a shocking 14 walks in less than 20 innings, with just 12 strikeouts.
But Tyrone Taylor, a player traded to New York with Houser, has numbers that far outpace his career norms. He's got an .869 OPS (he had a career .746 OPS in Milwaukee) with two homers, a shiny .358 on-base percentage and a walk-off hit. But be warned, that's just 54 plate appearances; he's not an every-day starter for the Mets.
Rowdy Tellez's scuffles have continued in Pittsburgh
Popular Brewers first baseman Rowdy Tellez struggled last season and battled injury, and Milwaukee was content to move on in the offseason. In Pittsburgh, the Brewers just saw him up-close, and it's been a rough start, with a .183 batting average and a .500 OPS. He has one homer but has struck out 20 times, with no other extra-base hits in 80 plate appearances.
Brent Suter has been as good as ever back at home in Cincinnati
Though he's 34, Brent Suter is putting up some of the best numbers of his career.
The former Brewers "raptor" has a 2.16 ERA in 10 games (16⅔ innings), with a 1.080 WHIP. Those would both be career bests, not counting the nine games he pitched in 2019 for Milwaukee … though, considering the sample size here is about the same, we probably have to count that one.
Suter, a Cincinnati native pitching in his home state for the first time, has 14 strikeouts and six walks. He pitched last year with Colorado and posted a 3.38 ERA in 57 appearances after seven seasons with the Brewers.
Bonus: Milwaukee native Alec Marsh was off to a superb start for Kansas City before he got hit by a line drive
He's not a Brewer, but Milwaukee Ronald Reagan alumnus Alec Marsh was off to an electric start before he landed on the 15-day injured list after he took a comeback liner off his elbow Wednesday. X-rays were negative, but he was shelved with a right elbow contusion.
In five starts, Marsh has a 2.70 ERA and a 1.013 WHIP, both excellent numbers. Last year in 17 games, he posted a 5.69 ERA and a 1.561 WHIP, so this marks a dramatic step forward for the 26-year-old. He's the first Milwaukee public school player in the major leagues since Bob Uecker.
