The Milwaukee Brewers are bringing back third baseman Mike Moustakas on a one-year deal, according to Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic.
Moustakas was dealt from the Kansas City Royals to the Brewers just before last year's trade deadline, appearing in 54 games for Milwaukee and delivering a walk-off single in Game 1 of the NLDS against the Colorado Rockies.
The deal will be worth around $10 million and will give Milwaukee some much-needed production from the left side of the plate.
But Moustakas offers more than just pop. Here are three reasons that bringing back “Moose” could be essential for the Brewers.
3. Steadiness
Outside of a 2016 season where Moustakas played just 27 games, he has been extremely dependable in terms of production. He has eclipsed at least 2.1 WAR in almost every season since 2015, while also hitting at least 22 homers and driving in more than 82 runs.
With Moustakas now on board, the Brewers now have some added insurance.
They are likely to see some regression from the likes of Jesus Aguilar and Christian Yelich, and Ryan Braun is only getting older. But given Moustakas' reliability at the plate, the Brewers' lineup should be that much more dangerous with a full season from Moose.
Moustakas is just as steady with the glove, rating mostly as an average to above-average defender for the length of his career.
So while the Brewers certainly add a big bat at the dish, they are hardly losing anything in the way of defensive proficiency.
2. Lineup options
Moustakas may be coming back to Milwaukee, but he may not be the everyday third baseman. But that is hardly a negative for the Brewers.
Fellow third baseman Travis Shaw is coming off of consecutive 30-homer seasons, and 30 of his 32 homers in 2018 were against right-handed pitching.
Meanwhile, Moustakas posted “reverse splits” at the dish, meaning he actually hits better against left-handed pitching despite hitting from the left side himself.
Now, the Brewers can continue to platoon Moustakas and Shaw based on the pitching matchups, or choose to play them together if they convert Shaw into a second baseman.
Regardless of how manager Craig Counsell decides to tinker with the lineup, having the ability to alternate boppers like Shaw and Moustakas while making them available off the bench nearly every night is a luxury.
Throw in the fact that free agent signing Yasmani Grandal is a switch-hitter as well as Yelich being a lefty, and the Brewers can hit you from both sides of the plate.
1. Championship experience
Sure, the Brewers won 86 games in 2017, but not too many would have predicted a 10-game improvement and NL Central title for Milwaukee the following year.
The Brewers continued their Cinderella run to the NLCS, where they came up one game short of advancing to the World Series.
Yes, the Brewers have plenty of veterans. But for most players on last year's roster, that was their first experience with October baseball.
Moustakas has been there before, having been to two World Series' and winning with the Royals in 2015. He and fellow Royals teammate Lorenzo Cain will undoubtedly be big clubhouse guys as this Brewers team looks to take the next step forward in 2019.
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