The Milwaukee Brewers on Monday facilitated a trade with the Boston Red Sox; sending third basemen Caleb Durbin, infielder Andruw Monasterio and utility player Anthony Seigler to Boston for left-hander Kyle Harrison.

Additionally, the Brewers will receive infielder David Hamilton and southpaw prospect Shane Drohan.

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The move comes just days before Milwaukee’s pitchers and catchers report to the Cactus League in Arizona to open Spring Training. With a shuffling of pieces, let’s view the pros and cons of the deal for the Brewers.

Pros:

1. Kyle Harrison adds another arm: Recently, Brewers manager Pat Murphy made it evident that the team would need to add to its pitching depth. By adding Harrison, the Brewers achieve that goal.

Harrison, 24, has 42 games (37 starts) of experience across his first three seasons in Major League Baseball. In 2024, he made 24 starts for the San Francisco Giants. For his career, Harrison has logged a 4.39 ERA across 194.2 innings of work.

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The young lefty has room for improvement, but he is ready to contribute now to Milwaukee’s rotation or bullpen instead of baking in the minors for the foreseeable future.

2. David Hamilton Provides Speed and Versatility: The Brewers reunite with Hamilton after selecting him in the eighth round of the 2019 MLB Draft. With a .222 career batting average and a .642 OPS through his first three MLB seasons, Hamilton is weak at the plate but provides more in other facets of his game.

Hamilton’s Baseball Savant profile demonstrates elite sprinting speed and above average fielding range. He has also spent a significant amount of his time in the majors at shortstop and second base, which gives the Brewers options for how to utilize him.

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3. Shane Drohan Could Help the Pitching Staff: Drohan is a 27-year-old prospect who has yet to make his MLB debut but could end up helping Milwaukee sooner than later.

After a rough three games with Single-A Salem last season, Drohan’s numbers drastically improved with Triple-A Worcester. In 12 games (11 starts) Drohan registered a 5-1 record with a 2.27 ERA and a 1.01 WHIP. If those numbers are indicative of what Drohan can be, then a callup might be imminent.

Cons:

1. The Loss of Durbin: After Joey Ortiz made the move to shortstop in the wake of Willy Adames’ departure for the Giants after the 2024 season, Durbin became Milwaukee’s mainstay at third base. Last season, Durbin made 131 appearances (119 starts) and played over 1,060 full innings at the position. His departure leaves questions for who will take his place.

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2. Moving off Monasterio and Seigler: Both Monasterio and Seigler have logged enough reps at third base in their careers to have plugged the position for the Brewers when needed, but now both are gone too. Will Ortiz move back to third base and Hamilton play shortstop? Will top prospect Jett Williams get called up sooner than later?

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