Marlins trade Yelich to Brewers for 4-player package

The Miami Marlins continued to clean house on Thursday, trading outfielder Christian Yelich to the Milwaukee Brewers for outfielders Lewis Brinson and Monte Harrison, infielder Isan Diaz, and right-hander Jordan Yamamoto, the team announced.

"We are pleased to be able to add a young, talented player like Christian to our organization," general manager David Stearns said in a statement released by the Brewers. "In a relatively brief time, Christian has emerged as one of the most skilled players in the league on both sides of the ball.

"It is rare when an organization gets a chance to acquire a player with Christian's talents at this stage in his career, and we are excited to add him to our team. Parting with the type of talent we traded is never an easy decision, and we wish Lewis, Monte, Isan, and Jordan nothing but the best with the Marlins."

Yelich, who is under team control for five years with $58.25 million remaining on his contract, joins a Brewers club that just narrowly missed the postseason in 2017, finishing 10 games above .500.

The 26-year-old owns a .290/.369/.432 slash line with 59 home runs, 293 RBIs and 72 stolen bases during his five seasons in the big leagues.

Meanwhile, Brinson was acquired by Milwaukee from the Texas Rangers as part of a deal for Jonathan Lucroy in 2016. The 23-year-old was the Brewers' top prospect and the No. 7 outfielder prospect in all of baseball, according to MLB Pipeline. He only managed a .106/.236/.277 slash line during a 21-game stint with the big-league club in 2017, but did swat .331/.400/.562 in Triple-A.

Diaz, a 21-year-old Puerto Rican second baseman (who also plays shortstop) is a highly-regarded prospect in his own right, but only managed a .222/.334/.376 line in High-A. He did drive in 54 runs along with 13 home runs.

The 22-year-old Harrison, a second-round pick of the Brewers in 2014, managed a solid season across multiple minor-league levels, combining to hit .272./.350/.481 with 21 home runs, 67 RBIs, and 27 steals.

Yamamoto recorded a 2.51 ERA and 1.09 WHIP during 22 appearances - 18 starts - at High-A Carolina. The 21-year-old Hawaiian was a 12th-round pick in 2014.

Miami has already traded Giancarlo Stanton, Marcell Ozuna, and Dee Gordon this offseason, while catcher J.T. Realmuto and second baseman Starlin Castro (who hasn't even played a game for the Marlins) have expressed their desire to be traded.