Milwaukee gets victory, three players
Crew beats Nationals, 4-1, and gets pitchers Gio Gonzalez and Xavier Cedeño and outfielder Curtis Granderson.
WASHINGTON - The Milwaukee Brewers finally acquired a starting pitcher Friday night, the one commodity the outside world has insisted they needed to make it to the postseason.
They didn’t exactly pick one up at the top of his game, however.
The Brewers traded for Washington left-hander Gio Gonzalez, who was one of the worst pitchers in the majors in August. Gonzalez went 1-4 with a 7.47 ERA in six starts during the month with a horrendous 1.820 WHIP.
News of the trade broke just as the Brewers’ game against Washington was beginning at Nationals Park.
Earlier in the day, the Brewers also strengthened their well-used bullpen when they traded for Chicago White Sox left-handed reliever Xavier Cedeño.
Then after the game, the Brewers announced the had acquired 37-
year-old outfielder Curtis Granderson from the Toronto Blue Jays for outfielder Demi Orimoloye.
After a decent first half in which he went 6-6 with a 3.72 ERA in 19 starts, Gonzalez, 32, has gone 1-5 with a 6.55 ERA in eight games since the break. Overall, he is 7-11 with a 4.57 ERA in 27 starts, with 153 hits and 70 walks allowed in 1452⁄3 innings, and 126 strikeouts.
The Brewers obviously are hoping a change of scenery gets Gonzalez back on track, as it did for veteran lefty Cole Hamels after the Cubs acquired him from Texas. Overall, Gonzalez is 124-97 with a 3.71 ERA in 308 career starts for Oakland and Washington.
Gonzalez has a $12 million salary for this season, and it remains to be seen how much of the remaining money the Brewers have to absorb. There was no immediate word what they surrendered in the trade, with one report merely calling it a couple of minor-leaguers.
Where Gonzalez will slot in the Brewers’ rotation remains to be seen. He last pitched on Wednesday in Philadelphia, allowing six hits and six runs in five innings, with three walks and six strikeouts.
The pitcher struggling the most of late in the Brewers’ rotation has been Junior Guerra, who is scheduled to start Sunday against the Nationals. That would be too soon for Gonzalez to pitch again, but the Brewers could make other changes to insert him as soon as possible.
In exchange for Cedeño, the Brewers traded two players from their rookie club in Helena, Montana, outfielder Bryan Connell, 19, and right-hander Johan Dominguez, 22.
To be eligible for postseason play, players had to be acquired before midnight Friday EDT. Cedeño is expected to join the Brewers on Saturday.
Cedeño has appeared in 33 games for the White Sox, going 2-0 with a 2.84 ERA. In 251⁄3 innings, he has allowed 19 hits and 13 walks with 28 strikeouts. He has a 1.260 WHIP and had limited lefthanded hitters to a .209 batting average and .603 OPS.
Cedeño has pitched over parts of eight seasons in the majors with Houston, Washington, Tampa Bay and the White Sox. Overall, he is 10-7 with a 3.81 ERA in 234 appearances with 168 strikeouts in 1672⁄3 innings.
“It’s a good guy to use in high leverage, or even lower leverage to help us get through an inning,” Brewers assistant general manager Matt Arnold said. “When rosters expand, it’s nice to move guys (out of the bullpen) quicker. You can use this guy in a number of different scenarios.
“He has a long track record of getting left-handers out. Especially when the rosters expand, you can use this type of pitcher really effectively.”
Cedeño is the second relief pitcher the Brewers have acquired from the White Sox this season. On July 26, they traded for veteran right-hander Joakim Soria, who has been a key late-inning performer.
Cedeño can’t be a free agent until after the 2019 season, so the Brewers have another year of control of him if they desire. He began this season at Class AAA Charlotte, where he went 0-0 with a 1.25 ERA in 20 games, with 25 strikeouts in 212⁄3 innings.
Granderson hit .243 with 35 RBI and 11 homers in 103 games with the Blue Jays this season.
Jennings avoids serious injury: Arnold confirmed the addition of Cedeño had nothing to do with the slight ankle injury suffered Thursday by Dan Jennings. The lefty reliever rolled his left ankle during a rundown play in Cincinnati but wasn’t limping Friday.
“It’s always scary when you roll your ankle,” Jennings said.