The sad decline of a former Miami Marlins star

I still remember the sad day when the Miami Marlins traded (seemingly needlessly) Christian Yelich to the Milwaukee Brewers. While The Fish seemed to be undergoing a sort of a rebuild at the time, Yelich was signed long-term and wasn't a free agent anytime soon. This rush to get the most value ended up an unmitigated disaster. It now sadly appears that the former star may be done for the season.

Former Marlins OF Christian Yelich may be nearing an end to his career.

I don't wish any harm to the former Miami Marlins OF. The return in the trade was a disaster and his time in Milwaukee was pretty surprising. Yelich was more above average than great with The Fish. From 2013 to 2017 he batted .290/.369/.432, with 17.5 WAR during that time. Yelich's best season with The Fish came in 2016, when he batted .298/.376/.483, with 21 home runs and 98 RBI in 155 games and 578 AB.

Christian Yelich took it to another level with the Milwaukee Brewers however. He batted .326/.402/.598, with 36 home runs and 110 RBI in 147 games and 574 AB in his debut for the team in 2018. He won the NL MVP award. He followed that up in 2019, when he batted .329/.429/.671, with 44 home runs and 97 RBI in 130 games and 489 AB. He had a 7.3 WAR in 2018 and a 7.0 WAR in 2019. Unfortunately, that was the peak of his career, though what a peak it was!

Injuries ruined Yelich since 2020. He batted .254/.362/.407 from 2020 to 2023, never hitting more than 19 home runs in a season. He had 4.3 WAR for those seasons combined. This season looked promising at first, as the 32 year old batted .315/.406/.504, with 11 home runs and 42 RBI in 73 games and 270 AB. Sadly, with season-ending surgery on the horizon and him aging, I wonder how much more he will take before retiring. He will continue receiving $26 million a year through the 2028 season, with a mutual $20 million option for 2029. I hope that he will be able to play at a high level again.