The Trade Deadline has come and gone and the Milwaukee Brewers have made their roster moves and have to now get back to baseball. The Crew are returning home after their West Coast road trip and will begin a four game series against the buying Pittsburgh Pirates.
The Brewers made a couple of moves on Deadline day, acquiring Dustin May and JoJo Romero from the Cardinals and Antonio Senzatela from the Rockies. They parted with a pair of prospects in each, giving up breakout prospects Alexander Frias
and Josiah Ragsdale for May/Romero and then Mark Manfredi and Juan Martinez for Senzatela.
May should join the Brewers rotation while Senzatela will be a bullpen weapon. Romero will also pitch out of the bullpen once he returns from appendicitis.
To make room on the 40 man roster, the Brewers designated RHP Carlos Rodriguez for assignment.
For the game tonight, the Brewers will have Brandon Sproat on the mound as he fights to keep his starting rotation spot. Sproat has a 5.05 ERA on the season. The Pirates will be throwing highly touted former prospect Bubba Chandler, who has a 4.56 ERA in his second season.
The Brewers will have both Jake Bauers and Andrew Vaughn in the lineup tonight with Bauers getting the start in right field. That means Luis Lara is on the bench tonight. Cooper Pratt is also getting the day off and Joey Ortiz will be back at shortstop. David Hamilton will be at third base.
The Pirates acquired several pitchers at the Trade Deadline, including Luke Weaver, Kirby Yates, and UW-Whitewater alum Lake Bachar. None of them will be available tonight, but should be here by the end of the series.
Pittsburgh’s lineup has Jake Mangum leading off, followed by Brandon Lowe, Bryan Reynolds, and Esmerlyn Valdez. Spencer Horwitz, Nick Gonzales, and Endy Rodriguez form the middle of the order, while Jacob Gonzalez and Henry Davis round out the bottom of the lineup.
The time for rumors are done, now it’s up to the final stretch. The Pirates were buying, the Brewers were buying, the race for the NL playoff picture is on.
