Rebuilds are structured around youth and the Milwaukee Brewers are employing that strategy at nearly every position. Tuesday’s trade was no different, as the team moved 30-year-old catcher Martin Maldonado and Triple-A pitcher Drew Gagnon to the Los Angeles Angels for 26-year-old catcher Jett Bandy.
Maldonado, better known as Machete, had been in the Brewers organization for over 10 years since being acquired in 2007 – after being released by the team that originally drafted him, the Angels, for his immaturity and off-the-field issues.
He spent the better part of six years in the majors with the Brewers, largely playing the backup role to All-Star catcher Jonathan Lucroy. Although he never showed much at the plate as a .217/.299/.342 career hitter – outside of literally tearing the cover off of a ball — he did have an exceptional arm and solid defensive skills, registering no less than a 30 percent caught-stealing percentage and a .992 or higher fielding percentage from 2012-2016. He only once posted a defensive wins above replacement value (dWAR) below 0.9 (0.4, 2016).
Even with only 355 appearances in six years with the team, Maldonado became a fan favorite for his fun-loving personality and work ethic, even filling in on the mound for a scoreless one-hit inning in 2014. But at 30 years old, he no longer fit into Milwaukee’s timetable or youth movement, although his departure surely signals the end of an era for Brewers fans, who have seen the combination of “Luc” and “Maldy” for the past six years.
Gagnon, on the other hand, was drafted by the Brewers in 2011 and reached his highest level in the minor leagues at Triple-A for the second time in 2015. Originally a starter, he was converted to a reliever just last season but found only marginal success in both roles, pitching to a 4.65 earned run average and 1.376 walks plus hits per inning in his minor league career. Last season, he collected a 5.56 ERA and 1.473 WHIP while striking out 48 and walking 21 in 55 innings.
In exchange for the pair, the Brewers seem to have gotten a great return in their new catching option. At 27 years old and with two more years of club control before hitting arbitration in 2019, Bandy offers a bit more flexibility and better all-around value – a necessity for a team that is still trying to figure out who its starting catcher will be next season.
Bandy has already shown a fair amount of potential on both sides of the plate at the major league level. Although his 2016 batting line fails to show it (.234/.281/.392), he does offer a good amount of power and totaled eight home runs in only 231 plate appearances. His history also shows he has the potential to harness it consistently, as he tallied 13 home runs and 40 runs batted in (363 PA) in 2014 and 11 home runs and 60 RBI (344 PA) in 2015.
Although the Brewers may have lost defensive excellence in Maldonado, they’re bringing back nearly the same, if not more, in Bandy, as he’s posted a caught-stealing percentage of 40 or better in each of his last three years and owns a .993 fielding percentage at the major league level.
Of course, as it stands, he does not have the luxury of having a walk-on position. Bandy will be competing against both Manny Pina and Andrew Susac for playing time, who have each shown potential on both sides of the plate in their own rights.
After the departure of Lucroy, 29-year-old Pina got some playing time down the stretch last season, and although his home run totals are nearly half that of Bandy’s, Pina boasts quite a bit more patience and consistency at the major league level. In 2016, he batted .254/.346/.394 with two home runs and 12 RBI in 33 games. Defensively, he holds nearly the same abilities as Bandy (.994 fielding percentage) but throws runners out at a smaller clip (30 percent at the major league level).
Susac, who will also be 27 next season, joined Milwaukee’s ranks mid-season via a trade that sent Will Smith to the San Francisco Giants. Once a top 100 prospect prior to 2015, Susac has proved himself to be a much stronger offensive asset than a defensive one. In 2016, between Triple-A Sacramento, Triple-A Colorado Springs and the Brewers, he hit .254/.320/.408 with eight home runs and 41 RBI in only 72 games (294 PA). He still possesses some defensive talent, but both his .989 MLB career fielding percentage and 25 percent caught-stealing rate fall quite a bit short of his teammates.
Considering all three possess somewhat similar skill sets, it may be hard to predict who will come out of Spring Training ahead, but as it stands, Bandy surely has the defensive proof and offensive potential to be the favorite going into Spring Training.
Jonathan Powell is the Managing Editor of Outside Pitch MLB and the Milwaukee Brewers writer. Follow him on Twitter @jonathannashhh.
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