Brewers Acquire Woodford, Send Baddoo to IL

It's March 24th.

Welcome to Milwaukee Brewers News Today, AI-powered coverage of your squad.

I'm Corey with the story.

The Milwaukee Brewers made a surprise trade right before opening day on Thursday.

They acquired right-handed pitcher Jake Woodford from the Tampa Bay Rays in exchange for minor

league pitcher Casey Hunt and some cash.

To open a spot on the 40-man roster, outfielder Aqueo Badu went on the 60-day injured list.

Woodford is a 29-year-old veteran with a mix of five pitches, including fastballs, a sweeper,

and a change-up.

His career earned, run average, sits at 5.10, though acclimed over 6.00 last season with

the Arizona Diamondbacks.

He was in Ray's camp on a minor league deal and brings right-handed relief depth.

Brewers' president of baseball operations, Matt Arnold, praised Woodford as a versatile

arm they know from facing him with St. Louis.

With only a few varieties in their bullpen before this, guys like Abner Urbe and Trevor

McGill, the team saw him as a perfect fit to balance there, lefty heavy group.

On the other side, Hunt was a solid prospect out of double A last year, with a 4.45 earned

run average over 26 starts.

But with so much starting pitching depth in the upper minors, he became expendable for

a big league contributor now.

Woodford has no minor league options left, so he stays with the majors once activated.

The Brewers have 72 hours post-trade, potentially getting him ready for opening day, and strengthening

their pen just in time.