Yasmani Grandal, Brewers Reportedly Agree to 1-Year, $18.25 Million Contract

Free-agent catcher Yasmani Grandal and the Milwaukee Brewers reportedly agreed to a deal, The Athletic's Ken Rosenthal reported Wednesday.

Per Yahoo Sports' Tim Brown, Grandal's contract with the Brewers is for one year and $18.25 million.

Grandal spent the last four seasons with the Los Angeles Dodgers but hasn't quite established himself as a particularly consistent presence at the plate. During his time with L.A., Grandal hit .238 with a .790 OPS.

That said, he does offer quality pop in spots and has cranked at least 22 home runs in three of the last four seasons.

Grandal's real value comes behind the plate, where he serves as one of MLB's premier defensive backstops.

According to FanGraphs, Grandal's 45 defensive runs saved are the most by any catcher dating back to 2015.

On top of that, Grandal accumulated 11.2 wins above replacement during his tenure with the Dodgers—good for third among catchers behind Buster Posey (15.5) and J.T. Realmuto (14.2) over that stretch.

If Grandal can maintain that kind of production in Milwaukee, the Brewers will no doubt be thrilled with their investment as they continue to tweak their roster in hopes of making a pennant push.

The Brewers were one win away from advancing to the World Series last season, losing to the Dodgers in the NLCS. Their catchers combined to hit .237/.294/.363 with 16 homers, so Grandal represents a significant upgrade with the bat in Milwaukee's lineup.