Former Padres, Brewers starter elects free agency

Starting pitcher Eric Lauer has elected minor league free agency, according to the transaction log at MLB.com. That was the anticipated outcome when Milwaukee sent the left-hander outright from the 40-man roster last week.

Lauer pitched four seasons in Milwaukee. The Brewers acquired the former first-round draftee alongside Luis Urías in a 2019-20 offseason deal that sent Trent Grisham and Zach Davies to the Padres. 

He was a non-factor during the shortened season but rebounded with consecutive solid years in 2021 and ’22. Lauer combined for a 3.47 ERA with a slightly above-average 23.8% strikeout percentage in 277 1/3 innings over that stretch.

The 28-year-old didn’t replicate anything near that kind of production this past season. He struggled to a 5.48 ERA in his first nine outings. An impingement in his non-throwing shoulder sent him to the injured list in late May. 

While he returned within a few weeks, the Brewers had decided not to keep him on the big league staff. They optioned him to Triple-A upon his reinstatement from the IL.

Lauer started nine of 12 appearances at Triple-A Nashville, posting a 5.15 ERA in 43 2/3 innings in the hitter-friendly Pacific Coast League. He punched out a strong 31.1% of minor league opponents while walking over 11% of batters faced. 

He didn’t get another MLB look until the final weekend, when the Brewers had already clinched the NL Central and were keeping their top starters in reserve for the playoffs. Lauer was tagged for eight runs on nine hits (including three homers) in four innings against the Cubs in what turned out to be his final start with Milwaukee.

The Kent State product has between four and five years of major league service. MLBTR contributor Matt Swartz projected him for a $5.2M arbitration salary, which no team was prepared to offer. Now that he’s a free agent, Lauer will at least draw minor league interest and may well find a low-cost MLB deal.

He’s only a season removed from looking like a viable No. 3-4 starter, although this year’s rough production came in tandem with a drop in velocity. His four-seam fastball averaged 90.8 mph during his major league work, more than two ticks below last summer’s 93.3 mph average. He lost three mph on both his cutter and curveball. 

As the season was winding down, Lauer told Curt Hogg of the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel that he’d battled inflammation in his throwing elbow and shoulder in addition to the right shoulder injury, contributing to the Brewers keeping him out of minor league action between June 12 and July 28.