Why Christian Yelich is on the Brewers' Mount Rushmore for the past 25 years
The Journal Sentinel picked the Brewers' Mount Rushmore for the 25 years of Miller Park/American Family Field. Here is why Christian Yelich made it.
Christian Yelich Jan. 25, 2018, is the greatest offseason date Milwaukee Brewers fans have ever seen – and good luck beating it. Within mere hours that afternoon and evening, the Brewers traded for Christian Yelich from the Miami Marlins and signed Lorenzo Cain to the largest free-agent deal in team history.
While Cain set a high bar as he produced 13. 6 wins above replacement for the Brewers across five seasons, the Yelich deal has gone above and beyond as he has become one of the best players the franchise has ever seen. The trade didn’t take long to look like a complete heist.
The four prospects Milwaukee sent to Miami – Lewis Brinson, Monte’ Harrison, Isan Diaz and Jordan Yamamoto – produced negative 6. 8 WAR. Yelich was worth 7.
3 WAR in his first year with the Brewers, when he was named National League most valuable player and led the club to within one game of a World Series berth. A foul ball off his kneecap in early September likely robbed Yelich of winning consecutive MVPs in 2019, but his 1. 100 on-base percentage plus slugging percentage (OPS) remains the best ever by a Brewers hitter by far.