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Braun’s rebuilt value makes for interesting trade possibilities
- Updated: May 3, 2016
If Ryan Braun’s spectacular start to 2016 means that he is “back,” then it’s also fair to note that he never really left, at least not in the way that most people think. No, he’s not the same player he was when he was winning the 2011 National League Most Valuable Player Award with what was arguably the best offensive season in Milwaukee Brewers history. It’s just that Braun has been hitting the ball extremely well for the past year — even if few noticed as the Brewers slid into the basement of the NL Central.
Since we put that out there, let’s back it up. Using Weighted Runs Created Plus — a league- and park-adjusted all-inclusive offensive stat that is set so 100 is “league average” — Braun is tied for 16th best of the 142 hitters with at least 500 plate appearances over the past calendar year.
Top hitters by wRC+, past 365 days, minimum 500 plate appearances
1. Bryce Harper — 199 2. Mike Trout — 170 3. Josh Donaldson — 159 —— 15 (tie). Braun / Anthony Rizzo — 142 —— 140. Michael Taylor — 60 141. Chris Owings — 58 142. J.J. Hardy — 56
That 142 mark means that Braun has been 42 percent better than average, and better than contemporaries like Kris Bryant, Carlos Gonzalez and Robinson Cano. It’s also nearly a dead-on match for his career average of 143, which is to say that Ryan Braun is hitting exactly like Ryan Braun always does.
Yet while Milwaukee’s rebuild is off to a promising start — though a 10-15 record doesn’t look like much, the on-field product is at least competitive as a once-thin farm has been revitalized by the trades of Carlos Gomez, Mike Fiers, Khris Davis, Jean Segura and others — this is still a rebuilding team a couple of years away from contention.
So, while acknowledging that it is probably too early to be looking ahead to the Trade Deadline, let’s suggest some possible landing spots for Braun anyway. The best fits reside in the American League, partially because it’s more wide open than the NL, but the presence of the DH doesn’t hurt. Braun has a limited no-trade clause, but that’s hardly a roadblock if he were compensated and liked the …
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