The Milwaukee Brewers have designated struggling outfielder Lorenzo Cain for assignment. The club has selected Jonathan Davis, an outfielder, from Triple-A Nashville to take his place on the roster.
What happens now?
The Milwaukee Brewers have 10 days to decide what to do with Cain. In short, they have three options.
Place Cain on waivers
If the Milwaukee Brewers place Cain on waivers, he could be claimed by any other MLB club. However, given the fact that he is hitting just .179/.231.234 this season, that might be unlikely. If Cain is not claimed, the Brewers would need his consent to assign him to one of their minor league affiliates. Players with more than five years of MLB experience have earned this right. If he refuses an assignment to the minors, the Brewers must release him or keep him on the major league roster.
Trade Cain
Another option the Brewers have is to trade Cain. As noted above, he is not performing well at the plate this season. If the Brewers do find a trade partner, they likely would not get very much in return. For one thing, Cain is in the final year of his contract and is making $18 million this season. This combined with his poor offensive output does not make him a target for teams. Of course, the Kansas City Royals, with whom Cain played for most of his career, could trade for him in order to give him a proper send off. However, the Brewers would likely still have to eat most of Cain’s contract.
Release Cain
The final option the Brewers have is to release Cain completely. If they were to do this, they would still be on the hook for all of his $18 million due. Even if Cain were to sign as a free agent with another team, he would still be getting paid by the Milwaukee Brewers.
Lorenzo Cain’s major league career
Lorenzo Cain has spent his major league career with the Milwaukee Brewers and Kansas City Royals. He won a World Series with the Royals in 2015.
Kansas City stats
In seven seasons with the Kansas City Royals, Cain hit .289/.342/.421. In 2015, the year the Royals won the World Series, he was an All-Star and came in third in AL MVP voting. That season, he hit .307/.361/.477 with 16 home runs and 72 RBI. He also scored 101 runs and stole 28 bases.
In 2017, his final year in Kansas City, Cain hit .300/.363/.440 with 15 home runs and 49 RBI. He scored 86 runs and stole 26 bases.
Milwaukee stats
Cain made his MLB debut with the Milwaukee Brewers back in 2010. In 43 games with the Brewers that season, Cain hit .306/.348/.415 with a home run and 13 RBI. After the season, the Brewers traded him along with other players to the Royals for Zack Greinke.
Cain returned to the Milwaukee Brewers as a free agent in 2018. His five-year, $88 million contract was the richest ever given to a free agent in team history.
In his first season back with the Brewers, Lorenzo Cain hit .308/.395/.417 with 10 home runs and 38 RBI. He was named an All-Star and finished seventh in NL MVP voting. Cain also scored 90 runs and stole 30 bases.
The Brewers and their fans began to see a decline in Cain’s play starting in 2019. This was mostly due to him playing through injuries all season long. His production at the plate dropped to .260/.325/.372. While he hit more home runs (11) and drove in more runs (48), he scored fewer runs (75) and stole fewer bases (18). However, he was awarded his first (and only) Gold Glove award.
Cain played only five games of the COVID-shortened 2020 season before opting out. Last season, Cain struggled to stay healthy, appearing in just 78 games. He hit .257/.329/.401 with eight home runs and 36 RBI.
As mentioned previously, Cain has struggled this season in the final year of his contract. This will likely be the last season of his career in the majors. Where it will end remains to be seen.
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