Rays trade struggling starter Aaron Civale to Brewers for prospect

KANSAS CITY, Mo. — The Rays traded struggling starter Aaron Civale to the Brewers Wednesday morning, paving the way for an upgrade to what could soon be a crowded rotation, saving money and adding a solid infield prospect in Gregory Barrios.

The Rays acquired Civale from Cleveland at last year’s trade deadline in exchange for first base prospect Kyle Manzardo. The 29-year-old right-hander hasn’t fared well with Tampa Bay, going 4-9, 5.17 ERA in 27 starts, completing six innings just four times.

The deal saves the Rays about half of Civale’s $4.9 million salary for this season and frees them from his arbitration-related pay raise for 2025, likely around $7 million, his final year before free agency.

It also creates an opening in the rotation, which will initially be filled by Shane Baz, who pitched well at Triple-A Durham and is expected to start for the Rays on Friday at Texas in place of Civale. By the end of July, the Rays also expect to have left-hander Jeffrey Springs, who is finishing his rehab from Tommy John surgery.

The deal brought Barrios, a 20-year-old ranked the No. 21 prospect in the Milwaukee organization by MLB.com, to Bowling Green, the Rays’ Class A affiliate.

“We’re entering a period where we have, in our opinion, more options, healthier options, in a sense, than we have right now,” Rays president of baseball operations Erik Neander said by phone. “I want to be very, very careful with that, because we know how quickly that can change. That’s part of the reason we brought Aaron in in the first place.”

“But we felt like the opportunity to get a prospect that our scouts and our analysts really liked, that fits well in our system, was, when you look at it, when you have someone like Shane Baz who, I think, developmentally, for him to continue to grow and develop, I think it’s important for him to have those opportunities in the major leagues, that combination put us in a position to make that attractive.”

Barrios, a Venezuelan native, received a $1 million bonus to sign with the Brewers and has moved up a level each season since. He is hitting .325 this season at High-A Wisconsin with one home run, 34 RBIs and a .796 OPS. MLB.com’s scouting report describes his defense this way: “The 6-foot infielder moves like water at shortstop with a solid first step, sure instincts and impressive action. He is capable of making plenty of throws from deep, and his defensive game will likely fuel his rise.”

Neander said there were a lot of things the Rays liked about him.

“He’s a great defender with a small frame, he’s got great build, great contact ability and at 20 years old I think he has a chance to become powerful enough to become a solid starter,” Neander said.

After Civale’s unimpressive start with the Rays last season, the team argued that a thorough analysis of the data showed he wasn’t as bad in 10 starts for them as his 2-3, 5.36 ERA indicated, nor was he as good in 13 starts for Cleveland as his 5-2, 2.34 ERA indicated.

While he had a strong start with the Rays this year, going 2-1, 2.12 in his first three starts, Civale struggled for much of the season, including a four-start stretch where he failed to reach the fifth inning (and allowed 20 runs in 18 2/3 innings). He was 2-6, 5.07 this season, with 14 starts since his last win. The Rays are 5-12 in his starts this year.

“We recognize the run prevention results and we think he’s a better pitcher than that,” Neander said. “Those things can happen over the course of 12 months. Just like the previous 12 months, I think we were in the other camp as far as run prevention was concerned, which was maybe even better than it was.

“I think the truth is he’s probably the kind of pitcher that’s in between his totals the last two years. If you look at that, you realize he’s a very good starting pitcher. And I think that’s what he is. So I wish him nothing but the best and I expect him to be that for Milwaukee.”

Baz, who was removed from the roster for Tuesday’s start against Durham, appears to be the most likely candidate to replace Civale, who was scheduled to start Friday. On Tuesday, the Rays said he was removed from the roster to be available to provide major league depth with the possibility of a doubleheader or heavy bullpen use this week in Kansas City because of the rain forecast. The Rays also could add a reliever for Wednesday’s game.

An oblique strain in the spring, due to weight gain, delayed Baz’s return from Tommy John surgery in September 2022. And that led to him being sent to Durham after completing his rehab assignment, as the Rays also wanted to limit his workload. He improved as he went, and in five starts in June for the Bulls, he was 3-0, 1.57, allowing 20 hits and 10 walks in 23 innings but also striking out 35 batters.

Springs was scheduled to make his fifth rehab start for Durham on Wednesday after posting a 3.86 ERA so far despite working just 9 1/3 innings. He is expected to remain with the Bulls at least through the All-Star break from July 15-18, and possibly longer.

The Rays also have starting options in Durham with non-roster left-hander Joe Rock, who is 4-3, 4.11 in 14 games since being acquired from Colorado; and left-hander Tyler Alexander, who began the season in Tampa Bay’s rotation and is 0-3, 3.64 in five outings in Triple-A.

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