Brewers' Stearns: Hader trade hurt team more than expected October 11 sharefacebooktwitterredditlink MILWAUKEE (AP) Milwaukee Brewers president of baseball Jack Morris Jersey operations David Stearns acknowledged Tuesday the trade of four-time All-Star closer Josh Hader affected the team more than he expected at the time he made the deal.The Brewers were 57-45 and had a three-game lead in the NL Central on Aug. 1 for pitchers Taylor Rogers and Dinelson Lamet, pitching prospect Robert Ga ser and outfield prospect Esteury Ruiz. The Brewers went 29-31 the rest of the way and .It had a more pronounced impact than I thought it would at the time, and the surrounding moves didnt adequately fortify the team in Joshs absence, Stearns said in a season-ending news conference.At the time of the trade, Stearns said he believed the prospects coming to Milwaukee could help the franchise stay competitive longer. The Brewers also were hoping the acquisition of Rogers and the arrivals of and in separate deals would add depth to the bullpen.Rosenthal, who hasnt pitched since 2020 Niko Goodrum Jersey due to injuries, and never made an appearance for the Brewers. Rogers had a 5.48 ERA and Bush a 4.30 ERA for Milwaukee, with .We dont get do-overs in this position, Stearns said. Looking back, I remain very excited about the young talent we have in the organization. I also realize that we went into a trade deadline in playoff position, and we didnt make the playoffs. And when that happens, you have to look back and say what more could we have done, what different could we have done.The Brewers finished seven games back of the St. Louis Cardinals in the NL Central and one game behind the NL's final wild card, the Philadelphia Phillies. That snapped a franchise-record string of four straight playoff appearances.This definitely stings, Stearns said. Its going to sting for a little while for all of us.Stearns said the lack of depth in Milwaukees rotation proved costly and would merit attention in the offseason.The rotation featured three 2021 All-Stars in Cy Young Award winner Corbin Burnes, Brandon Woodruff and Freddy Peralta and returned Adrian Houser and Eric Lauer. Burnes was the only pitcher in that group who didnt spend at least some time on the injured list.The Brewers went 13-22 in games that werent started by any of those five.I think we need to build some depth in our pitching, Stearns said. Thats an area where when we got hit with injuries, particularly in the Willie Horton Jersey rotation, we had a tough time. And so as we go into next year, I do think building pitching depth is important and some of thats going to have to come externally.Stearns also said he believes Christian Yelich can improve upon his 2022 performance, even if the outfielder never returns to the heights of his 2018 and 2019 seasons. Yelich was primarily a leadoff hitter last season and batted .252 with 14 homers, 57 RBIs and a .738 OPS. .I dont think I can sit here and predict that were going to see a level of production that we saw in 2019, Stearns said. I dont think thats fair, and I dont think that would be fair for any player. But I think Christians going to work Dixon Machado Jersey hard and he has worked hard, and I do believe hell get to a level above what we saw this year.Milwaukee could have some holes to fill this offseason.Outfielder Andrew McCutchen, catcher Omar Narvez, utilityman Jace Peterson, Rogers and Rosenthal are free agents. The Brewers have to decide whether to pick up a $10 million option on second baseman Kolten Wong and a $3 million option on reliever Brad Boxberger.But the Brewers return most of their nucleus, making these next couple of years particularly crucial.Burnes, Woodruff and Lauer are among the players under control for two more arbitration years. The same is true of shortstop Willy Adames, selected as the teams MVP by the Milwaukee chapter of the Baseball Writers A sociation of America.We remain well within our Mikie Mahtook Jersey competitive window, Stearns said. We believe we have a very good core coming back and the goal of the organization remains to win a World Series. That is our aim. That is what we are working toward.___More AP MLB: https://apnews.com/hub/MLB and https://twitter.com/AP_Sports in this topic Milwaukee Brewers National League Major League Baseball Josh Hader Brad Boxberger Andrew McCutchen Jace Peterson Eric Lauer Christian Yelich Brandon Woodruff Freddy Peralta Corbin Burnes Josh Hader San Diego Padres Milwaukee Brewers share Ottawa hosts Los Angeles after Giroux's 2-goal game The Ottawa Senators host the Los Angeles Kings after Claude Giroux's two-goal game against the San Jose Sharks in the Senators' 5-2 win 40 MINS AGO ASSOCIATED PRESS Penguins host the Blue Jackets following Kapanen's hat trick The Pittsburgh Penguins host the Columbus Miguel Cabrera Jersey Blue Jackets after Kasperi Kapanen's hat trick against the St. Louis Blues in the Penguins' 6-2 win 40 MINS AGO ASSOCIATED PRESS Ducks bring losing streak into game against the Hurricanes The Anaheim Ducks aim to end their six-game losing streak when they play the Carolina Hurricanes 41 MINS AGO ASSOCIATED PRESS Blackhawks face the Metropolitan Division-leading Devils The Chicago Blackhawks face the top-ranked team in the Metropolitan Division, the New Jersey Devils 41 MINS AGO ASSOCIATED PRESS Tampa Bay in action against Detroit following overtime victory The Tampa Bay Lightning host the Detroit Red Wings after the Lightning took down the Toronto Maple Leafs 4-3 in overtime 41 MINS AGO ASSOCIATED PRESS