Once a standout in the Brewers' rotation, Yovani Gallardo returns on free-agent deal

The Milwaukee Brewers are going to find out if old friend Yovani Gallardo has any gas left in the tank.

In a surprising move, the Brewers have offered a free-agent contract to Gallardo, who pitched eight seasons for them before being traded to Texas in January 2015. Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic was the first to report that Gallardo, who will be 32 in February, and the Brewers had a deal.

Jon Heyman of FanRag Sports reported the agreement was a major-league deal but the terms were unknown. Gallardo became a free agent when Seattle declined its $13 million club option on his contract for 2018. The Brewers have one opening on their 40-man roster to accommodate the signing.

Brewers general manager David Stearns said he could not comment on the reports, which was not surprising because free-agent signings are not official until the player passes a physical. With the signing coming on the weekend, that likely wouldn’t happen for a couple of days.

Gallardo was cut loose by the Mariners after a tough 2017 season in which he went 5-10 with a 5.72 earned run average in 28 games, including 22 starts. In 130 2/3 innings, Gallardo allowed 138 hits and 60 walks with 94 strikeouts, while also surrendering 24 home runs. He was assigned to bullpen duty twice during the season.

It has been a rough couple of years for Gallardo, who went 6-8 with a 5.42 ERA in 23 starts for Baltimore in 2016, battling shoulder and biceps issues at the outset of that season. Thus, he is 11-19 with a 5.57 ERA over his past two seasons with a 1.550 WHIP.

Gallardo fared much better during his eight seasons with the Brewers, going 89-64 with a 3.69 ERA in 214 games (211 starts). He was the Brewers’ second-round draft pick in 2004 and made his major-league debut three years later at age 21.

Gallardo recorded at least 200 strikeouts for four consecutive seasons from 2009-’12, a club record. He went 17-10 with a 3.52 ERA in 33 starts in 2011, helping the Brewers win a franchise-record 96 games and claim their only NL Central crown.

Gallardo was brilliant in the Brewers’ division series victory over the Arizona Diamondbacks, pitching Games 1 and 5. He went seven innings in each start, allowing only two runs (1.29 ERA) with three walks and 14 strikeouts, as the Brewers advanced to the NLCS. He was not as sharp in his one outing against St. Louis in that series, allowing eight hits and four runs in five innings.

Gallardo posted another strong showing in 2012, going 16-9 with a 3.66 ERA, but he slipped the next season, going 12-10 with a 4.18 ERA. His velocity declined a bit, his strikeout rate went down and he had trouble going deep in games because of high pitch counts.

After Gallardo went 8-11 with a 3.51 ERA in 32 starts in 2014, then-general manager Doug Melvin decided it was time to trade him. Gallardo was a year from free agency and Melvin dealt him to Texas for shortstop Luis Sardinas and two pitching prospects, Marcos Diplan and Corey Knebel.

Sardinas was later traded to Seattle but Knebel emerged as one of the top closers in the majors last season (39 saves,126 strikeouts in 76 innings), and Diplan is still considered a solid prospect in the Brewers’ farm system.

Gallardo was effective in 33 starts for Texas in 2015, going 13-11 with a 3.42 ERA before hitting the free-agent market. The Rangers made a qualifying offer to him to keep draft-pick compensation intact, which made him less attractive to clubs. Spring training had started when Baltimore finally stepped forward with a three-year, $35 million offer.

As has happened a few times over the years with free agents signed by the Orioles, there were concerns over his physical exam and that deal was scrapped. The sides finally reached agreement on a two-year, $22 million contract with the $13 million option for 2018.

Gallardo was traded to Seattle after one season in Baltimore for outfielder Seth Smith.

The Brewers have been on the hunt for starting pitching this off-season, a need made more acute by shoulder surgery on right-hander Jimmy Nelson, who is expected to miss a good portion of the first half of the 2018 season. They have explored both the free-agent market and trades but the price is high on both fronts for top-level starters.

The Brewers likely have reached a low-risk agreement with Gallardo that will allow them to assess during spring training if he can help their starting rotation.