The Milwaukee Brewers are 27-22 and in first place in the National League Central Division. However, they have benefited from the rest of the teams in their division struggling thus far this season. Only the Pittsburgh Pirates, who have a record of 25-22, have a record above .500 among the other NL Central teams. Despite the plethora of injuries suffered to the Brewers’ starting rotation, pitching has continued to be a strength of this team. However, despite numerous trades in the offseason to improve the offense, Brewers hitters have continued to be inconsistent.
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It is, perhaps, for this reason that Zachary D. Rymer of Bleacher Report named the Hunter Renfroe trade as the one offseason move that Milwaukee likely regrets.
Do the Milwaukee Brewers Regret Trading Hunter Renfroe to the Los Angeles Angels?
Rymer’s article describes one offseason move that each MLB team may wish it had back. He names the Hunter Renfroe trade as the Brewers’ biggest mistake due to Milwaukee’s inconsistent offense:
“Trade Hunter Renfroe, suffer the consequences.
“The Red Sox can vouch. They dealt Renfroe to Milwaukee for [waves hands] reasons after he clubbed 31 home runs for them in 2021, and they ended up sorely missing him in 2022 as he followed up with 29 long balls for the Brewers in 2022.
“The Brewers nonetheless followed the same blueprint when they traded Renfroe to the Angels for three pitchers in November. Though one of those hurlers (Elvis Peguero) has been solid for them in relief, their offense could use the 10 homers Renfroe has hit for the Angels.”
One of the first things that the Brewers did this offseason was trade Renfroe, who many considered to be their best hitter in 2021, to the Angels for Janson Junk Elvis Peguero, and Adam Seminaris. Junk and Seminaris are currently in the Brewers’ minor league system while Peguero made the roster and has a 3.86 ERA in 11 games.
Did the Milwaukee Brewers Make a Mistake Trading Hunter Renfroe?
At the time of the trade, Brewers general manager Matt Arnold attributed the trade to the team believing in the outfielder prospects and their need for more pitching depth. Renfroe disagreed. He believed he was traded because he did not think Milwaukee wanted to pay him. One rumor, though, states that Renfroe was traded because he was racist towards the Latino players on the team and killed the clubhouse chemistry.
Now, there were a few things that killed the Brewers’ chemistry last season, notably the trade of Josh Hader to the San Diego Padres, a move that even David Stearns says was a mistake.
While no player or coach has come out to confirm the rumor regarding Renfroe, there are certain things that point to it being true. For one, despite being an all-around solid contributor at the plate, Renfroe is playing for his third team in three years. Remember, the Red Sox off-loaded him to Milwaukee for Jackie Bradley Jr. of all players. There is also the fact that this year’s team is having more fun, engaging each other in the dugout more, and are playing loose.
Sure, having an extra 10 home runs in May might be nice; but the Brewers are still in first place and have a young team that they can build around for years to come. Additionally, the chemistry they have now will help them continue to play well together in the later days of the season.
Bats can be resurrected; chemistry, as last year proved, cannot.
It was a good trade.
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