Brewers acquire reliever Jake Woodford in trade with the Rays
Always in the market to acquire new arms they can work their magic on, the Milwaukee Brewers on Tuesday, March 24, added yet another to their bullpen mix.
Coming over from the Tampa Bay Rays is right-hander Jake Woodford , with the Brewers sending out minor-league righty K.C. Hunt and cash in exchange.
Woodford, 29, is a six-year veteran of the major leagues who last pitched 22 games for the Arizona Diamondbacks in 2025. He finished 0-4 with three saves while logging a 6.44 ERA and WHIP of 1.60 with 23 strikeouts in 36 ⅓ innings of work.
Woodford also struggled in stints with the Chicago White Sox and Pittsburgh Pirates in 2024.
His best seasons came with the St. Louis Cardinals , for whom he pitched from 2020-23. In 2022, Woodford went 4-0 with a 2.23 ERA, WHIP of 1.12 over 27 appearances (48 ⅓ innings).
In four appearances with the Rays this spring (7 ⅓ innings), Woodford logged a 1.23 ERA, WHIP of 0.82 and limited opposing batters to a collective .154 average.
"I think he's built up to 40-plus pitches," manager Pat Murphy said in advance of his team's exhibition finale against the Cincinnati Reds at American Family Field.
"He definitely has a history," he continued. "Obviously, we're excited about acquiring him. With our inexperience and that type of thing we feel he can be an upgrade. The front office has done an incredible job of always being mindful and on point when it comes to trying to make an upgrade in some way.
"Multi-inning guy that has MLB experience, hopefully is at a good stage in his career."
With a career ratio of 5.9 strikeouts per nine innings over 111 appearances, Woodford clearly is at his best when he's using his sinker (31.4% usage rate, 93.3 mph average velocity) to generate ground balls (45.8% in 2025).
He also throws a sweeper (22.9%), changeup (18.6%), four-seamer (17.3%) and cutter (9.9%).
"Happy to have him," said president of baseball operations Matt Arnold. "He's pitched in a number of different roles. He's been a veteran in the league for a while. A guy we faced, obviously, with St. Louis . He's an interesting arm that can play a valuable role in a number of different spot in our bullpen, or potentially in the front of games.
"We were at the point where we wanted to add some depth. He's right-handed and I think we're obviously a little more skewed to the left-hand side, so we feel like he's a really good fit for us."
Woodford has no remaining minor-league options, meaning he'll be included on the 26-man roster once he arrives. Right-hander Easton McGee would likely be optioned to Class AAA Nashville in the wake of Woodford's official addition.
Outfielder Akil Baddoo – estimated to be sidelined until June with a left quad strain – was moved to the 60-day injured list to make room for Woodford on the 40-man roster.
Hunt, who turns 26 on July 14, was named co-Brewers minor-league pitcher of the year in 2024 but was unable to repeat that success in 2025 when he finished 7-9 with a 4.45 ERA and 1.27 WHIP in 26 starts at Class AA Biloxi.
Hunt did strike out 122 batters in 121 ⅓ innings.
This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: Brewers acquire reliever Jake Woodford in trade with the Rays
