After being bumped from the Milwaukee Brewers' rotation and then requesting a trade, pitcher Aaron Civale is headed to the Chicago White Sox, the teams announced Friday.
ESPN's Jesse Rogers first reported Friday morning that the Brewers have traded Civale, 30, for White Sox first baseman Andrew Vaughn, a 27-year-old former first-round pick who is hitting only .189 this season but has piled up 77 home runs in his first four and a half seasons in the majors.
Advertisement
The Brewers called up top prospect Jacob Misiorowski on Tuesday, and the 6-foot-7, high-heat throwing righty took Civale's place in the rotation.
A 2022 second-round pick, Misiorowski dazzled in his first career start Thursday, throwing 14 pitches that reached at least 100 mph and spinning five no-hit innings before exiting with right calf and quad cramping. Misiorowski, who was awarded the 6-0 win over the St. Louis Cardinals, said postgame the cramping was "nothing crazy" and that he feels good physically.
Once the Brewers told Civale that he was headed to the bullpen, Civale's agent, Jack Toffey, reportedly went to Milwaukee general manager Matt Arnold.
Advertisement
"The conversation was very professional," Toffey said Thursday, via The Athletic. "I just very respectfully said that Aaron would really like an opportunity to continue his career as a starter. He's going to be a free agent at the end of the year."
Although Civale made a relief appearance in Game 1 of last year's wild-card series against the New York Mets, he has started all 122 regular-season games he has played in during his seven-year MLB career, which also includes stops with the Cleveland Guardians and Tampa Bay Rays.
Civale strained his left hamstring in his first appearance this season, but he has logged a 3.32 ERA across the four starts he has made since returning May 22.
Advertisement
In exchange for Civale, the Brewers are receiving Vaughn. The right-handed hitter has struggled so far this season. In addition to hitting below .200 in his first 48 games of the year, he's recording the lowest on-base percentage (.218) and slugging percentage (.314) of his career.
Vaughn has 35 hits in 193 plate appearances this season, with five home runs and 19 RBI.
Vaughn is expected to be an option at first base and at designated hitter for the Brewers, who are sending cash to the White Sox to make up for the differences in the traded players' salaries, according to MLB.com's Adam McCalvy. Civale is earning $8 million this season, while Vaughn is earning $5.85 million. Plus, Vaughn has one more year of control via arbitration.
English (US) ·