Sudden departure of pitching coach Derek Johnson leaves Brewers with three vacancies to fill
As it turns out, the Milwaukee Brewers' biggest moves this off-season might be replacing departed coaches.
The Brewers suffered their second defection in a week on Wednesday when general manager David Stearns announced pitching coach Derek Johnson was leaving to pursue another opportunity. Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic reported that Johnson was leaving to become pitching coach of the Cincinnati Reds under new manager David Bell.
Hitting coach Darnell Coles also left the staff of his own volition and was named to that same position with the Arizona Diamondbacks earlier Wednesday. The Brewers previously announced the contract of bullpen coach Lee Tunnell was not being renewed.
So, the Brewers now find themselves looking to replace three coaches, and Johnson's exodus particularly hurts because of his success in grooming a pitching staff shy of recognized stars. Despite having only one 10-game winner, Jhoulys Chacín, in the rotation and relying more heavily on relievers than starters down the stretch and into the postseason, the Brewers ranked fourth in the National League with a 3.73 team ERA in 2018.
"Obviously, we value D.J.," Stearns said. "D.J. did a tremendous job with us and helped us a lot over the last three years. Sometimes, this happens as an organization has success. Other clubs take notice and when they get an opportunity, they go after some of your people.
"While you never like losing good people, you also recognize that coaches, front office people, everyone needs to do what's right for them to move their careers forward. I'm sure over the years, if we continue to have some level of success, we'll see more of this, and we'll see some of it in the front office as well."
In forming the first coaching staff under manager Craig Counsell, the Brewers plucked Johnson out of the farm system of the Chicago Cubs, where he was minor-league pitching coordinator. Prior to that, he received high praise for his work as pitching coach at Vanderbilt University.
Known as a teacher as well as "fixer" of problems for those struggling, Johnson helped many young pitchers develop into successes with the Brewers, including Josh Hader, Corey Knebel, Zach Davies, Freddy Peralta and Brandon Woodruff. But he also worked with veterans such as Jeremy Jeffress, Wade Miley and Chacín to make them the best they could be.
The Brewers constantly heard from the outside world they didn't have enough established pitching, and injuries and poor performance kept the rotation in flux. But, under Johnson's guidance, the staff performed well enough to get the team to Game 7 of the NLCS before bowing to Los Angeles.
Though it looked odd for both Coles and Johnson to leave so soon after a season in which the Brewers advanced within a game of the World Series, it seemed more coincidence than anything. Coles apparently was looking for a new challenge and Johnson likely got an offer from the Reds too good to turn down.
Stearns did not reveal details of the negotiation but said he tried to work out a deal to keep Johnson without success. He also said there was "a solid culture" among the coaching staff and that "they enjoyed working together."
"Ultimately, we want all of our employees to feel like they have the chance to explore opportunities, and ultimately do what's best for them and their families," Stearns said. "In this case, I think D.J. found a unique opportunity elsewhere and wanted to take advantage of it.
"We attempted to work something out but ultimately D.J. decided he had other opportunities and decided to pursue them. We try to compensate fairly across the board. We understand this is a competitive market and we have good people. We leave it to each person to decide what's best for himself and his family.
"We had extensive talks with Derek to try to bring him back."
Asked if he considered this a setback to the team's progress, Stearns said, "Anytime you lose a person who has contributed to your success, you recognize there's going to be a challenge to replace those contributions. We also have an opportunity to explore what's out there from a pitching coach perspective, to explore our ability to bring in another talented coach."
Jeffress stays; Lyles is out
In perhaps their easiest personnel decision of the off-season, the Brewers exercised their club option on reliever Jeremy Jeffress for $3.175 million for the 2019 season.
The Brewers did not, however, exercise their $3.5 million option on starter/reliever Jordan Lyles, who was acquired during the season from San Diego. Instead, the club paid a $250,000 buyout, making Lyles a free agent and leaving 34 players on the 40-man roster.
Jeffress, 31, put together the best season of his career in 2018, earning his first all-star berth. In a team-high 73 appearances, he posted an 8-1 record and 1.29 earned run average with 89 strikeouts in 76⅔ innings and 0.991 WHIP. Opponents batted .182 against him.
Jeffress proved to be a master at escaping jams, allowing only eight of 38 inherited runners to score. His 1.29 ERA was best among qualifying NL relievers, and he went 23 consecutive outings without allowing a run from April 7 to May 27, establishing a team record.
Whether it was fatigue, bad luck or just making bad pitches, Jeffress struggled in the postseason, going 0-1 with a 6.75 ERA and one save over eight outings, with 16 hits allowed in eight innings.
A first-round draft pick of the Brewers in 2006 who is in his third stint with the club, Jeffress signed a non-guaranteed deal last winter for $1.7 million that included club options for 2019 and 2020 ($4.3 million). He earned an additional $550,000 this year in incentives for games finished and innings pitched.
Jeffress had good reason to want to stay with the Brewers and the team had good reason to want to keep him. In 253 career outings with Milwaukee, Jeffress is 21-4 with a 2.17 ERA and 42 saves. In 91 appearances with three other clubs, he is 4-3, 4.76 with one save.
Lyles, 28, was acquired Aug. 5 from the Padres on a waiver claim to provide another multi-inning reliever in the bullpen. He made 11 appearances for the Brewers, going 1-0 with a 3.31 ERA, with 22 strikeouts in 16⅓ innings.
Lyles was not included on the playoff rosters for the NLDS or NLCS.