The 2018 Major League Baseball trade deadline will be remembered for just how many selling teams there were, and the various prices that were paid for "rental" players. By rental players, we mean players with contracts that are expiring at the end of the season. Of the many "rental" transactions we've seen, the trade of third baseman Mike Moustakas to the Milwaukee Brewers may be one of the most interesting.

The "Moose" on the move!

Mike Moustakas was traded to the Milwaukee Brewers by the Kansas City Royals late on July 27, 2018. The return was outfielder Brett Phillips and right-handed pitcher Jorge Lopez. What's interesting about the return is unlike many other rental trades, these are not minor leaguers with upside, but rather once highly-thought of prospects that have already graduated to the Major League level. Of course, neither Phillips or Lopez has lived up to their billing.

The "Moose" has had a fairly good season for the Royals, even though he has a rather ugly batting average and an on-base percentage around .300. His power output is about what we've come to expect and his defense at third base is solid if not spectacular. His baserunning has been dismal, but not unexpected. But, on only a $5.5 million contract for the season, plus a $1 million buyout on a mutual option that will quite likely be declined by the player, the Brewers are assuming minimal financial risk.

BUT, don't the Brewers have a third baseman?

Before we get to the return for the Royals, which is quite interesting itself, let's talk about the implications of the Brewers acquiring Moustakas. The power of Moose's bat is quite welcome. The issue is that the Brewers already have a fine third baseman in Travis Shaw. Of course, Shaw can reliably handle first base as well, but the Brewers have a fine first baseman already in Jesus Aguilar. So, where do all the pieces fit?

The trouble with the Brewers is second base. They've gotten well-below average production from the position in 2018, with Jonathan Villar leading the way as a below-average hitter. But it's highly unlikely you would see Moose playing second base. That leaves only Travis Shaw to be on the move to the keystone. While Shaw isn't your typical second baseman, he's shown defensive versatility in the past. So, we'll see how the Brewers' creativity works out. As a team trying to win the National League Central, solidifying their power output at the cost of a few potential runs on defense seems like a good trade-off, especially as Moose is fine at the hot corner.

We'll see how Shaw actually fares at second for the rest of 2018. But, on paper, this is a move the Brewers really needed to make.

What About the Guys the Royals Got?

Once a top prospect, Brett Phillips did fine in his first MLB action in 2017. But in 2018, he's struggled. He's even been below average at AAA with the bat. He's fine defensively, though, actually above-average. He had 8 Defensive Runs Saved in only about 200 innings in the outfield in 2017, and 2 DRS in only 42 innings in 2018. So, if he hits anywhere near league average, he's going to be a useful outfielder for the Royals. He's still only 24 and has years of control left.

Jorge Lopez has shown potential in the past, although like Phillips, he's had a down 2018 with only a few appearances in the Majors. But this is a guy who throws in the mid-90's with his fastball, has a good curveball, and a serviceable change-up. Whether he becomes a fourth or fifth starter or just a middle reliever for the Royals remains to be  seen, but he needs to get the walks under control.

Really, if the Royals end up with a fourth outfielder and a middle reliever for two months of Moustakas, they made out pretty well. The Moose gets to be in a pennant race and potentially set himself up for a nice contract in the offseason.

For the Royals, they shed a few dollars in payroll and receive two players that can play on the Major League team right now. Phillips could still be a starting outfielder and Jorge Lopez could still be a useful pitcher for them. The Brewers weren't really going to miss them, but when you're a team that's doing as poorly as the Royals, any controllable reinforcements are always welcome.

In 2015, Baseball Reference unveiled a new feature highlighting the top players by Wins Above Replacement (better known as WAR) for any given franchise. It also gives the Top WAR leaders for any given season.

While Wins Above Replacement isn’t everyone’s favorite stat, it is a great stat when it comes to comparing players in relation to their contemporaries. When I was perusing the Milwaukee Brewers page, I found a name that I didn't recognize. It was a third baseman by the name of Don Money. The name sounded vaguely familiar, and was in fact, "Easy" Money for the Brewers.


Don Money with the Pirates and Phillies

Don Money was originally signed by the Pittsburgh Pirates. They traded him to the Philadelphia Phillies for Hall of Famer Jim Bunning and others. Bunning was solid for the Pirates before being traded to LA in 1969, so it would be a good trade for them. As a utility infielder, Money had one above average season for the Phillies, mostly playing third base in 1970 with an OPS+ of 123 (meaning his batting line was 23 percent better than league average). His other three seasons with the Phillies were mediocre, providing most of his value from sheer defensive versatility. He did have a fine season with the glove in 1969 while playing mostly at shortstop.


Don Money with the Brewers

Money was traded to the Milwaukee Brewers after the 1972 season in a trade highlighted by pitcher Jim Lonborg (which also netted the Phillies a good season from pitcher Ken Brett). The Phillies had no idea that they were trading away a future 4-time All-Star. Then again, the guy who took over for Don Money in Philly was some dude named Mike Schmidt.  This third baseman would put up over 100 WAR over his career. Larry Bowa also proved to be fine at shortstop. They did OK in the long term, though.

Still, the Brewers were very happy with that trade. Pitcher Bill Champion had a couple of decent years before giving away all of that value with his next two bad years, becoming a net zero from that deal. Infielder John Vukovich was also terrible, costing the Brewers about a win in 1973 and being about replacement level in 1974.

But Don Money would be a steal, netting the Brewers 27.1 WAR over 11 years. In 1973, the utility man picked up 3.2 WAR, before having a 5 WAR season in 1974, one in which he also netted his first of 4 All-Star appearances. They were all deserved. His other All-Star seasons were 1976 (3.6 WAR), 1977 (5.1 WAR and his best year), and 1978 (4.8 WAR). Not bad for a guy who played all over the infield. In his prime, though, he mostly started at third base, and later first base.


Don Money, All-Star Infielder

By all accounts, Don Money was a very good defensive player. Particularly at third base, Money was such a good fielder that he even picked up the nickname "Brooks" after the Gold Glove third baseman Brooks Robinson. According to the defensive metrics, though, he was very above average in some seasons. But in others, his defense was decidedly below average. Still, his bat was just good enough to consistently keep him an above-average regular.

Money did have some down years. In 1975 he played in only 109 games and his glove wasn’t as good as usual,but his bat still made him an above-average player according to Baseball-Reference - FanGraphs wasn’t as kind. 1979 and 1981 were truly bad seasons. Sal Bando played a lot of third for the Brewers in 1979, and wasn’t great. Money bounced back in 1980 as Bando proved to be done and had a 2+ WAR season even in only 86 games. In 1981, though, he shared time with both Roy Howell and Sal Bando, the latter of whom was truly done - and was about replacement level in 60 games.

The End for Don Money

Money was truly “cashed out” by 1983 and soon after retired from the MLB. The Brewers were okay though, with some Paul Molitor guy taking over full time at third in 1982. While Molitor had already established himself in the bigs as a second baseman, the Brewers decided to go with the better defensive player in Jim Gantner at the keystone, moving Molitor to third. Molitor would go on to be a Hall of Famer, and Gantner was solid, so the Brewers made the correct choices.

Money would actually play a short stint in Japan in 1984. While he actually played fairly well, it was not a good experience for him and his family. .In 1987,  he would return to baseball as a fairly successful minor league manager. Some years later, in 2007, he was named the Southern League Manager of the Year for his work with the Double-A Huntsville Stars. After 2011, he would move into the front office as the Brewers' special instructor of player development.

So, Money did okay. He left Philly to make room for Mike Schmidt. He manned the hot corner for the Brewers well until yet another future Hall of Famer Paul Molitor assumed his role. While he’s no Hall of Famer, Money truly provided some great value and while he was a decently known player in his day, who ended up replacing him on both the Phillies and Brewers overshadowed a true All-Star career.

Congrats to David Stearns for becoming the next GM of the Milwaukee Brewers! The 30-year old will be the youngest current GM in the game, taking over for longtime GM Doug Melvin who is moving into an advisory position with the club. Stearns most recently worked as Houston's assistant GM and the Harvard grad has also served in a baseball operations capacity with the Indians. Knowing the successes both front offices had during his tenure, maybe the young blood of Stearns is just what the Milwaukee franchise needs.

Stearns actually inherits some good things. They have a likeable manager and good baseball guy in Craig Counsell. The Carlos Gomez/Mike Fiers trade brought in some solid young talent. One of those guys, Domingo Santana, is off to an excellent start. The struggling Kyle Lohse comes off the books after this season, leaving Matt Garza as the only albatross contract remaining. Ryan Braun's paydays are huge, but he's had a solid 4 win year. Lind will probably stick around and Khris Davis may be all bat - so the latter may find his way to an AL team in need of a DH.

The rest of the roster definitely needs an overhaul, as this lineup simply isn't cutting it. The Brewers probably miss Marco Estrada in the rotation, although Lind was arguably worth the swap. Jimmy Nelson, Taylor Jungmann and Wily Peralta are all capable major league pitchers and Jungmann in particular has made great strides this year. But the Brewers need two #1 or #1.5 pitchers to compete in what's a stacked NL Central in the future. They also need a couple more consistent bats.

Stearns has his work cut out for him, but he seems to be the right man for the job.