The pitching matchup for Game 3 of the National League Division Series between the Milwaukee Brewers and Chicago Cubs is enough to make Pittsburgh Pirates' fans cringe.
Quinn Priester will start for the visiting Brewers against Jameson Taillon at Wrigley Field with Milwaukee trying to close out a sweep of the three-game series.
Both were first-round draft picks by the Pirates, Taillon in 2010 and Priester in 2019, when Neal Huntington was the general manager. Current GM Ben Cherington traded both players, and the Pirates got minimal return.
Taillon was traded to the New York Yankees just before the start of spring training in 2021. The return was right-handers Roansy Contreras and Miguel Yajure, outfielder Canaan Smith-Njigba, and minor-league infielder Maikol Escotto.
Contreras showed some promise early with the Pirates but wound up with a record of 9-12 with a 4.83 ERA in 53 games (30 starts) over parts of four seasons (2021-24). He was claimed off waivers by the Los Angeles Angels last season and pitched briefly for the Baltimore Orioles and Colorado Rockies this year.
Yajure pitched in 16 games combined for the Pirates in 2021-22, while Smith-Njigba appeared in 18 games in 2022-23. Escotto was released this season while playing at Double-A Altoona.
The Pirates shipped Priester to the Boston Red Sox at last year's trade deadline for infielder/outfielder Nick Yorke.
Yorke is 23 and still has time to develop, but hit .226/.272/.340 with three home runs in 33 games during parts of the 2024 and 2025 seasons. Meanwhile, Priester was traded from the Red Sox to the Brewers early in the season and became a breakout star, posting a 13-3 record, a 3.32 ERA, and an NL-best .813 winning percentage in 29 games (24 starts).
I asked Priester what he thought was the key to his success. His answer was telling.
"There's no doubt that everybody in this clubhouse believes in me," Priester said. "That's a very powerful thing. They believe in me for a reason, that confidence to execute pitches — but not necessarily strike everybody out, but get the ball on the ground, simplified the game for me a lot."