Brewers swing deal for slugger Carlos Santana

MILWAUKEE -- Carlos Santana went to sleep at the bottom of the National League Central standings on Thursday and woke up at the top.

While he was napping after an overnight flight home with the Pirates from a series in San Diego, the Brewers acquired the 37-year-old switch-hitter for 18-year-old shortstop prospect Jhonny Severino, one of Milwaukee’s two seven-figure International signees in 2022. Santana expects to join his new team on Saturday in Atlanta during its weekend series against the MLB-leading Braves.

"I'm a little bit surprised," Santana said. "Most of the time, teams don't try to trade a player in the same division. But I understand baseball, I understand the business."

Of moving to a first-place team, he said, "It's good. They have a lot of good players and I see that team, everybody [is on] the same page and plays to win. They're fighting to make the playoffs, and I like it."

Santana has posted a sub-.750 OPS every year since hitting 34 homers with a .911 OPS for Cleveland in 2019, but he’s a former All-Star and Silver Slugger who will improve the Brewers’ already elite defense, and he adds some pop to a lineup that could use it. With the Pirates this season, Santana was slashing .235/.321/.412 with 12 home runs and 53 RBIs in 94 games, including a booming, walk-off home run against Matt Bush and the Brewers on June 30 at PNC Park that was followed by a jaunty dance at home plate.

Santana said he'll consult with his new Brewers teammates to come up with new moves. Then, he'll try to create a moment to use them.

"I've received word from the guys already that they're pumped," Brewers GM Matt Arnold said. "We've got a lot of guys that are excited, and that's great. Carlos did some damage against us earlier this year in Pittsburgh, and we noticed that. So, a lot of guys on our staff are certainly thrilled to have him."

Besides his terrific clubhouse reputation, the Brewers should benefit from Santana’s experience (he's played in five postseasons, including in the 2017 World Series), plus his defense and his bat at first base, with Rowdy Tellez fighting through injuries and a slump this season, and now on the injured list until the second half of August while recovering from a freak injury to his left ring finger. Utility man Owen Miller has played most of the innings at first for Milwaukee with Tellez sidelined, but Miller has one home run and a .535 OPS since the start of June.

As a team, the Brewers rank 25th of 30 MLB teams in wRC+ (88), an all-around measure of offensive production, and 26th with 4.11 runs per game. They have scored more than four runs only once in 12 games since the All-Star break, winning instead with a solid pitching staff and one of baseball’s best defenses -- so good that Arnold said this week he was reticent to add a run producer to the detriment of run prevention.

In Santana, who leads MLB first basemen with six defensive runs saved, the Brewers are attempting to improve both.

"We value what he does on both sides of the ball, and you know that's kind of been our DNA all year," Arnold said. "We talk about adding offense, and I think all of us want to try to add a bat. We also don't want to do that at the expense of our defense. Somebody like Carlos, we feel like we were able to check a lot of boxes there."

Said Santana: "I'm working very hard. I'm very dedicated to getting better playing defense. I'm focused and concentrated on helping my team."

Severino, 18, is a 6-foot-1, 185 pound shortstop from Santo Domingo in the Dominican Republic who signed with Milwaukee for $1.23 million in January 2022. After playing at Milwaukee’s Dominican complex last year, he came stateside this season and has an .871 OPS through his first 52 plate appearances in the Arizona Complex League.

Severino ranked just outside MLB Pipeline’s Top 30 Brewers prospects, but he was the 21st-ranked prospect in his international signing class and is well-regarded within the Brewers' system. Milwaukee’s recent Draft class included a pair of highly rated high school infielders, third-round pick Eric Bitonti and sixth-round pick Cooper Pratt, whom the Brewers signed for about $1 million over slot apiece -- one factor in the club’s willingness to part with a young shortstop like Severino.

"I think we've built up enough capital internationally to sustain this loss, but it's certainly a tough one," Arnold said. "We invested real time on this player, we invested dollars. Our player development staff spent a lot of time with him and we liked him a lot. There are a lot of people here who think Jhonny has a bright future ahead, but you have to pay to play poker. ...

"He walks in the door and he looks like somebody that would be a free safety at the University of Alabama. I mean, it's that kind of athletic, physical specimen. He's big-shoulders, can barely fit through the door. He runs well, has a chance to play on the dirt, has power. All the ingredients of a guy you would hope to get. They [the Pirates and their fans] should be happy to get this player because he's a really good prospect. We know he's far away, but we know we have to give something of quality to access a player like Carlos Santana. We were prepared to do that."

Arnold still has several days to continue to add to a team that leads the National League Central. With the DH in play, adding another bat is certainly in the realm of possibility, especially with news that third baseman Brian Anderson is looking at early- to mid-August to return from his back strain. Anderson had previously hoped to be back in the lineup during this road trip.

Asked whether he wanted to add more, Arnold said, "Certainly still looking."