Brewers deal 4 prospects to Marlins for Yelich
The Milwaukee Brewers' outfield is getting even deeper.
The Brewers traded a package of prospects to the Miami Marlins on Thursday night for outfielder Christian Yelich.
The deal features two of the Brewers' top prospects: outfielder Lewis Brinson and infielder Isan Diaz, as well as outfielder Monte Harrison and right-handed pitcher Jordan Yamamoto.
Brinson was the Brewers' No. 1 prospect a year ago per MLB Pipeline, while Diaz, a shortstop and second baseman, was No. 6.
Brinson checked in at No. 18 in Baseball America's recently-released top-100 prospects list.
Harrison was a second-round pick in 2014, while Yamamoto was a 12th-round pick that year.
"It is rare when an organization gets a chance to acquire a player with Christian’s talents at this stage in his career, and we are excited to add him to our team," Brewers GM David Stearns said in a statement. "Parting with the type of talent we traded is never an easy decision, and we wish Lewis, Monte, Isan and Jordan nothing but the best with the Marlins."
A career .290 hitter, Yelich was a Gold Glove-winner in 2014 and a Silver Slugger in 2016, and hit .282/.369/.439 with 18 home runs last season.
The 26-year-old has been the subject of trade rumors since the Marlins' front office, led by newcomer Derek Jeter, began making massive cuts to payroll earlier this offseason.
Jeter's purge has also included outfielders Giancarlo Stanton and Marcell Ozuna, as well as second-baseman Dee Gordon.
Yelich has four years remaining on his contract, and is due $7 million next season.
