The Arizona Diamondbacks acquired right-handed pitcher Tyler Wagner in a five-player trade with the Milwaukee Brewers on Saturday, the team announced.
Along with Wagner, the Diamondbacks received 2013 All-Star infielder Jean Segura, while the Brewers acquired infielder Aaron Hill, pitcher Chase Anderson and shortstop Isan Diaz.
MLB.com ranked Wagner as the No. 15 prospect in the Brewers farm system. Milwaukee drafted the 25-year-old Las Vegas native in the fourth round of the 2012 draft. Wagner had a stellar 2015 campaign with Double-A Biloxi, going 11-5 with a 2.25 ERA and striking out 120 batters.
He also had a small stint with the Brewers in 2015 but struggled heavily in his three starts. Wagner pitched 13.2 innings and gave up 11 earned runs, finishing with an ERA of 7.24.
MLB.com highlighted Wagner’s fastball as his strongest pitch, while he continues to improve his changeup:
Using that closer mentality from his days at Utah, he goes right after hitters, inducing weak contact early in counts. His slider is a solid average hard breaking ball with bite that misses bats. While his changeup isn’t quite as good, it is effective at neutralizing left-handed hitters. His walk rate has gone down each year since his summer debut and he continues to get a good amount of groundball outs.
His brief big league debut was just a taste, with Wagner very close to being ready to fulfill a ceiling as a mid-to-back of the rotation type of starter at the highest level.
He may need another year or two before making it to the main roster, but Wagner will be a good addition for Arizona. The Diamondbacks have already bolstered the top of their rotation by signing star pitcher Zack Greinke and trading for 25-year-old Shelby Miller in the offseason. Wagner proved in his Double-A stint last year that he has a high upside with plenty of room to grow.
In two years, the Diamondbacks may have one of the best pitching rotations in the major leagues, and Wagner could be a part of it.
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