Brewers Acquire Four Players from San Diego

MILWAUKEE – The Milwaukee Brewers have acquired left-handed pitcher Taylor Rogers, left-handed pitcher Robert Gasser, outfielder Esteury Ruiz and right-handed pitcher Dinelson Lamet in exchange for left-handed pitcher Josh Hader. The announcement was made by President of Baseball Operations David Stearns.

Rogers and Lamet will join the Major League team. Gasser will be assigned to Double-A Biloxi. Ruiz will join Triple-A Nashville.

“The players we are receiving in this trade help ensure that the future of the Milwaukee Brewers remains bright while not compromising our desire and expectation to win today,” said Stearns. “This mix of present Major League talent and high-level prospects furthers our aim to get as many bites of the apple as possible and, ultimately, to bring a World Series to Milwaukee. Trading good players on good teams is difficult, and that certainly is the case with Josh. We also recognize that to give our organization the best chance for sustained competitiveness, to avoid the extended down periods that so many organizations experience, we must make decisions that are not easy.”

Rogers, 31, went 1-5 with a 4.35 ERA and 28 saves in 42 relief appearances with San Diego this season. His 28 saves ranks second in the Major Leagues. He has 48 strikeouts in 41.1 innings pitched while holding opponents to a .239 batting average.

Rogers, an All-Star last season with the Twins, owns a career record of 18-23 with a 3.29 ERA in 361 games, all coming in relief, with Minnesota (2016-21) and San Diego (2022). He produced a career-high 30 saves in 2019. His 76 saves since 2019 ties for seventh in the Major Leagues. Rogers has 409 career strikeouts in just 356.0 innings pitched (10.34 K/9IP).

Gasser, 23, was selected by San Diego in the second round of the 2021 First-Year Player Draft out of the University of Houston. He is currently the seventh-best prospect in the Padres organization according to MLB Pipeline and ninth according to Baseball America. Gasser was 4-9 with a 4.18 ERA in 18 starts at Class-A Fort Wayne this season with 115 strikeouts in just 90.1 innings pitched.

Ruiz, 23, made his Major League debut for the Padres this season, appearing in 14 games/7 starts (3g in CF, 2g in LF, 2g in RF). Between Double-A San Antonio (49g) and Triple-A El Paso (28g), he hit .333 (97-for-291) with 13 HR, 46 RBI and 60 stolen bases in 77 games. His 60 stolen bases and 84 runs leads all of Minor League Baseball this season. He is currently the eighth-best prospect in the Padres organization according to Baseball America.

Originally signed by Kansas City as a non-drafted free agent from the Dominican Republic on July 3, 2015, Ruiz was traded to San Diego as part of a six-player deal on July 24, 2017. His first name is pronounced “ess-TAY-oo-ree.”

Lamet, 30, has spent his entire five-year Major League career (2017, 2019-22) with San Diego, going 15-19 with a 4.08 ERA in 82 games, including 56 starts. He has 410 career strikeouts in just 315.2 innings pitched. Opponents have hit just .217.

Lamet produced his best season in 2020, earning All-MLB Second Team honors, as he went 3-1 with a 2.09 ERA in 12 starts, striking out 93 batters in just 69.0 innings pitched while opponents batted .161. He has made 13 appearances this season, all coming in relief.

Hader, 28, went 17-17 with a 2.48 ERA and 125 saves (second in franchise history) in 269 relief appearances with the Brewers (2017-22). Acquired in a six-player trade with Houston on July 30, 2015, he earned NL Reliever of the Year honors three times (2018-19, 2021) and was a four-time All-Star (2018-19, 2020-21). Hader is 1-4 with a 4.24 ERA and 29 saves in 37 appearances this season.

NOTE: This press release was submitted to Urban Milwaukee and was not written by an Urban Milwaukee writer. It has not been verified for its accuracy or completeness.