As we discussed yesterday, the Brewers were all set to deal pitcher Zack Greinke, and they pulled the trigger on Friday night, agreeing to a deal with the Los Angeles Angels that sent Greinke to Anaheim in exchange for shortstop prospect Jean Segura and Double-A pitchers Ariel Pena and John Hellweg. All three prospects ranked among the top-10 in the Angels farm system according to Baseball America's pre-season rankings.
Segura was the best position prospect left in the Angels farm system, displaying a plus hit-tool while playing both second base and short stop during his time in the minors. He was recently called up to the majors by the Angels, but having skipped Triple-A, he likely would be better off heading back at least to Triple-A. He will be able to play shortstop for the time being, filling a need for the Brewers, but ultimately he will need to move off of the position. Segura has also battled injuries and missed significant time, having played over 100 games in a season just once in his minor league career. He doesn't walk a ton, but also doesn't have the power to be a middle-of-the-order hitter, but if he continues to be able to hit .300, he could be a solid one or two man in the Brewers lineup.
In Pena and Hellweg, the Brewers got a pair of power-armed right-handers, both of whom throw consistently in the upper-90's. Pena sports a 2.99 ERA in Double-A this season in what has been his best full season as a professional. His control is the best it's been since he joined full-season leagues, and he's still struck out 111 batters in 114 1/3 innings. His changeup is still a work in progress, but it was his control that was pointing him towards the bullpen, so his changes to remain a starter have greatly improved this season. He'll still need time in the minors to refine the change-up, but if he does, the Brewers will have a legitimate starter on their hands.
Hellweg battled control problems that were even worse than Pena's, and has stints when he's dominant but also stints when he can't find the strike zone at all. His 4.5 BB/9 is actually the best of his career, but has mysteriously come at the expense of the strikeouts that make him dominant. Having never whiffed less than a batter per inning in his career, Hellweg is striking out just 6.6 batters per nine innings this season. The results have been good, with a 3.38 ERA this season in Double-A, but the continued lack of command is troubling. With his 100-mph fastball, he could be destined for a bullpen role if he doesn't refine his command even further.
