Brewers Reacquire Jordan Lyles In Trade With Pirates

Image credit: Jordan Lyles (Photo by Quinn Harris/Getty Images)

In need of a starter for the stretch run, the Brewers acquired veteran righthander Jordan Lyles from the Pirates on Monday in exchange for Double-A righthander Cody Ponce.

Lyles, 28, joins a Brewers rotation that ranks 20th in the majors with a 4.84 ERA. He appeared in 11 games for the Brewers last season as a reliever after they claimed him off waivers from the Padres. He signed with the Pirates as a free agent in the offseason.

Ponce ranked as the Brewers’ No. 25 prospect in the Midseason Top 30 Update.

 

BREWERS ACQUIRE

Jordan Lyles, RHP
Age: 28

It’s been a tale of two seasons for Lyles in 2019. He began the year with a 1.89 ERA over his first nine appearances (eight starts) but followed with a 9.57 ERA over his last nine starts. Overall, Lyles is 5-7, 5.36 on the year. The 2008 first-round pick hasn’t been particularly effective over the course of his career, but if he can regain his early season form, it will be a boon to a Brewers club in dire need of pitching.

PIRATES ACQUIRE

Cody Ponce, RHP
Age: 25

A second-round pick in 2015, Ponce moved from the rotation to the bullpen full-time this year at Double-A Biloxi and saw a resulting uptick in his stuff. He’s a big man at 6-foot-6, 240 pounds with a fastball that now sits 94-95 mph in relief. The increased velocity has helped his average cutter and curveball play up, and as a result he’s striking out a career-best 10.3 batters per nine innings this year. Ponce’s future is as a reliever, and he has a chance to help the Pirates sooner rather than later.