The Brewers Fulfilled The Promise of Deadline Intrigue—Next Comes the Winning Part

A fortnight ago, we crowned the Milwaukee Brewers the trade season's most interesting team. The deadline has since passed, so it's time to ask: did the Brewers live up to their promise?

The quick answer is "yeah, probably." Sure, the New York Yankees received more headlines for acquiring a slew of big-named prospects, and the Texas Rangers better positioned themselves for the immediate future. But the Brewers offered excitement unlike any other club, thanks to Jonathan Lucroy's decision to invoke his no-trade clause and nix an agreed-upon deal with the Cleveland Indians. (Hey, that's fun, right?)

The more complete answer is that the Brewers lived up to their promise by adding to an already loaded farm system, maintaining long-term flexibility, and giving us a glimpse of the future.

We ended our previous column expecting general manager David Stearns to trade Lucroy, Will Smith, and perhaps another player. He did just that, with the "other" being closer Jeremy Jeffress. In return, the Brewers received five players: catcher Andrew Susac, outfielder Lewis Brinson, left-hander Luis Ortiz, right-hander Phil Bickford, and a Rangers prospect to be named later. You may not have heard of those players before―Susac is the only one with big-league experience, and that was as Buster Posey's backup―but their addition to the Brewers' system has analysts like Jim Callis of MLB.com ranking Milwaukee's farm system as the best in baseball.

To help understand what makes these prospects so endearing, we asked Baseball Prospectus' minor-league editor Craig Goldstein for the mound-visit pitch on each. Here they are:

Lewis Brinson - "He's a potential five-tool player with the hit tool representing the weak spot. He could be a superstar if he hits his ceiling, and while there's considerable risk involved, his glove raises the floor."

Luis Ortiz - "He attacks hitters with a potential plus fastball-slider combination, and the changeup could get to average. His command isn't stellar at present, though it could mature to average or better in time. He's not yet 21 years old, so he has plenty of time to refine it."

Phil Bickford - "There's a chance he can fulfill a back-end starting role on the strength of his fastball/slider pairing, as both show promise, but his below-average command does cause them to play down at present. There's a back-end bullpen profile awaiting him if the command never comes. "

Andrew Susac - "At 26, he's old for being a prospect, and with 221 at-bats, he isn't rookie-eligible. Still, he's got 20-homer pop, and a good enough eye that he can provide value even if he doesn't hit for average. Behind the plate he's got a strong arm and quick release, and should be able to hold runners at bay."

Sounds good, right? Mmm-hmm.

The crazy thing is that the Brewers could add more to their prospect warchest. Ryan Braun's contract (roughly $80 million over four years) won't seem as burdensome during the offseason, when budgets and lineups are thinner; Jonathan Villar's two-way stylings at shortstop could cause a team to act irrationally; Corey Knebel is a power-armed young reliever, and they tend to get gobbled up like jelly beans by contending teams; and heck, some general manager might find late-bloomer Junior Guerra enthralling enough to trade for in a desolate free agent environment for starting pitchers. You never know.

Even admitting our ignorance about what the future holds, it's conceivable that the Brewers resist the urge to go all-in for the future―in part because their future is a breath away.

Any Milwaukee fan who woke up on Tuesday bummed about the Lucroy trade had to view the promotion of shortstop prospect Orlando Arcia as the Brewers equivalent of grief bacon. Arcia isn't going to become the next Lindor or Correa―in other words, he isn't going to be involved in a great debate about the best shortstop, or even the shortstop who would make the best friend―but he could become a heck of a player. Arcia's best traits are his well-rounded game―scouts seem to think he has the potential for four plus tools―and high-grade makeup. A shortstop who can bat near the top of an order? Lovely.

Arcia's debut could be followed by others, too. Remember, the day after Stearns was announced last September as general manager, he promoted six players to the majors, including a few quality prospects. Stearns could conceivably go on a similarly aggressive promoting streak this year, with southpaw Josh Hader and outfielder Brett Phillips each making sense as a plausible call-up. Brewers fans aren't likely to see many of their new toys―Susac aside, anyway―but that's okay because this system has a lot of older toys worth their time.

Did Milwaukee live up to its deadline promise? Yes.

The Brewers, more so than even two weeks ago, are an intriguing organization with the potential to pivot from seller to a buyer in a hurry.

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