The Milwaukee Brewers' refusal to part with top prospects, including Jesus Made and Logan Henderson, collapsed a potential blockbuster.
By this point, it's common knowledge that the Milwaukee Brewers didn't give the Detroit Tigers exactly what they were looking for, and for the most part, that seemed to be a big-league arm.
Logan Henderson's name has long been linked to Detroit if a deal for Tarik Skubal was going to take place, but for whatever reason, the Tigers settled for Los Angeles Dodgers' River Ryan instead.
At the end of the day, Milwaukee put a ton of effort into a potential Skubal deal. In what could've been deja vu to their CC Sabathia trade in 2008, this one just simply never came to fruition.
Now, ESPN's Jeff Passan further revealed what went on behind the scenes. It turns out the Brewers had not one, not two, but four untouchables, and Detroit's asking price was simply too much.
Brewers' four untouchables revealed
According to Passan, this organization was unwilling to part with MLB's top prospect Jesus Made. That one should come as no surprise, and neither should any of these next three players.
Passan said the Brewers "wouldn't move shortstop Cooper Pratt or outfielder Luis Lara... Right-hander Logan Henderson, with five more years of club control, was off-limits as well."
Not only is Ryan coming off a major injury, but he's also four years older than Henderson and doesn't have nearly the numbers to compete with one of Milwaukee's top young arms.
It's not unreasonable for the Brewers to be protecting these four players. Made wasn't going anywhere, and this team did everything in their power to build Pratt and Lara from the ground up, and they went all-in on those two by giving them major extensions before ever stepping foot in the big leagues.
So the question is, why didn't the Tigers want any of the other Brewers prospects? Milwaukee has the top farm system in all of baseball, and while they were willing to deal three players, including two top 100 prospects, their refusal to include Henderson, or a big-league pitcher, was the final nail in the coffin.
Milwaukee can live without Skubal
Think of it this way: Made could be the next big thing in all of baseball. MLB Pipeline recognizes him as the No. 1 player for a reason, and there's a chance he could eclipse Jackson Chourio, someone who has already been absolutely unbelievable in Milwaukee.
Skubal was a three-month rental, so giving up Henderson seems like the biggest overpay in the entire world, and it's not like the Tigers were going to let Milwaukee get away with a one-for-one swap. This trade, or lack thereof, is in the past, and knowing what Detroit was asking, it's better that way.
