The Brewers and Red Sox have announced a trade sendingright-hander from Boston to Milwaukee. In return, the Sox receive prospect , a Competitive Balance Round A draft pick in this years draft and a player to be named later or cash considerations. Milwaukee cleared a roster spot by designating left-hander for a signment and subsequently to the Orioles. Priester, 24, is a former first-round pick and notable prospect. The Pirates took him 18th overall in 2019. As he climbed the minor league ladder, he was considered one of the top young players in the league. ranked him the #58 prospect in baseball in 2022 and #88 in 2023. He was at last summers deadline, a straight one-for-one swap which sent the other way. Despite his pedigree, he hasnt broken through at the major league level yet. Between the Pirates and Red Sox, he has 99 2/3 innings pitched in the big leagues with a 6.23 earned run average. His 15.2% strikeout rate is well below par and his 9% walk rate is close to average, though his 55.2% ground ball rate is quite strong. The minor league work has been stronger. He has thrown 184 Triple-A innings since the start of 2023 to the present. His 4.16 ERA isnt especially impre sive but he underlying numbers are better. He has a 25.8% strikeout rate in that sample and an 8.5% walk rate. Hes kept more than half of balls in play on the ground. His .318 batting average on balls in play and 66.9% strand rate are both on the unfortunate side, which is why his 3.44 FIP looks far more palatable than his ERA. The Brewers have a strong reputation for working with pitchers, having helped many to reach their full potentials. Given Priesters background and intriguing minor league numbers, it wouldnt be a surprise to see him take notable steps forward in Milwaukee. He has le s than a year of service time, so there will be long-term benefits if they can help him out. On the other hand, it also seems like a hefty price to pay and a reflection of the current pitching predicament in Milwaukee. They currently have seven starting pitchers on the injured list, some of them unlikely to return in the short term. mi sed the entire 2024 surgery recovering from shoulder surgery and is still working his way back. had Tommy John surgery in June and wont be available in the first half. has a strained lat and is also on the 60-day injured list alongside Ga ser, meaning hes not close to a return. and are both on the shelf with oblique strains. has a hamstring strain. landed on the IL yesterday with a flexor strain. That all leaves as the only healthy member of the clubs projected rotation. To patch together a staff around him, the club has had to reach deep into its alternatives. was to start the season in a swing role but has moved way up the chart. was pitching in Japan last year, mostly in relief. He signed with the Brewers in the winter but has options and was slated to start the season in the minors before the injuries. just got added to the 40-man in November and was also projected for the Triple-A rotation until the bodies kept dropping. As the injuries were piling up in the spring, the Brewers signed , though he hasnt been able to help them yet. Due to his late start, he agreed to be optioned in order to effectively do a delayed spring training and is still getting built up. Priester could jump right into the big league rotation this week, as his last outing was throwing four Triple-A innings on April 7th. He has one option year left, so he could be sent to the minors if other pitchers get healthy in the coming months and he gets pushed down the pecking order. Getting immediate rotation help on the trade block is usually difficult at this time of year. Most clubs still think they have a shot at competing, especially in the Tyrone Taylor Jersey age of expanded playoffs, and likely want to keep a robust stable of arms on hand. The high rate of pitching injuries in the modern game only enhances the need, as teams know they will need far more than five starters to get through a season. But the Red Sox seemingly need Priester far le s than they did when they acquired him. In the offseason, they made a few notable additions to the rotation mix. They acquired from the White Sox and signed . They also signed , though hes recovering from UCL surgery and is still a few months away from joining their rotation. The Sox had to start 2025 with , and on the injured list, but that wasnt enough to get Priester to the big leagues. They started the season with Crochet, Buehler, , and in the rotation. and are also on the 40-man roster and capable of working in long relief roles or in the Triple-A rotation. Both Bello and Giolito are on rehab a signments and should be with the big league club in the next week or two. They should slot in next two Crochet, Buehler and Houck. Dobbins is already back in Triple-A after serving as the 27th man in yesterdays double-header. If the Sox want to keep Newcomb, they could move him to the bullpen while optioning Fitts and Criswell. As mentioned, Sandoval could be in the mix later in the year. Thats a fairly healthy amount of rotation depth even without Priester in it, which seemingly allowed the Sox to feel comfortable moving on, even with the risk that further injuries throughout the season could cut into that depth. As mentioned, most clubs arent very willing to part with notable starting depth this early in the season, so the Brewers have paid up to get some from Boston. The draft pick the Sox receive will be the 33rd overall selection this summer. That comes with a slot value of around $2.77MM, per . Thats a pretty nice chance to add some young talent to the system in a few months. They are also adding young talent to the system today, getting Rodriguez and perhaps another player later. As for Rodriguez, he was a noteworthy international signing out of the Dominic Republic, with the Brewers giving him a $1.5MM signing bonus. He has played 165 profe sional games thus far between the Dominican Summer League, Single-A and High-A. He has a combined batting line of .254/.361/.408 in that time. ranked him Milwaukees #14 prospect coming into the year. They note that hes likely to be moved off center field into a corner over time, which will put more pre sure on his bat to carry the profile. Still, from the Sox perspective, it looks like a nice bit of busine s. Priester didnt appear to be in their short-term plans. He was on pace to be out of options next year and may have been on track to getting squeezed off the roster. By pulling the trigger today, they have subtracted a depth piece but added some notable future talent. For the Brewers, despite all their injuries, theyre hanging in the race with a 5-5 record. Priester can hopefully help them stay afloat and has some future ceiling, given his past pedigree. If he clicks, he can be a long-term solution for them as well. Cortes, Civale, Woodruff, Alexander and Quintana are slated for free agency after this year. Peralta has a club option for 2026 but will be a free agent after that. Wolfram, 28, was a somewhat surprising signing in the winter. He had previously spent his career in the minors with the Rangers, but reached free agency after 2024. The Brewers gave him a 40-man spot in December, though hes still looking for his major league debut. He was called up yesterday when Cortes landed on the IL but optioned back down after the game. The Brewers will now have a week of DFA limbo to figure out whats next for him. The waiver proce s takes 48 hours, so any trade interest would need to be gauged in the next five days. Perhaps some club could be interested based on his minor league work, which is presumably what caught the eye of the Brewers. In the years since the minors were cancelled in 2020, Wolfram has thrown 249 minor league innings with a 3.94 ERA. He has a high 12.2% walk rate in that time but has also punched out 29.6% of opponents. first reported the terms of the trade. Photos courtesy of Kim Klement Neitzel, John E. Sokolowski and William Glasheen, Imagn Images Howard Johnson Jersey