e before."For the first time since he signed with the team in June 2009 http://www.marlinsfanproshop.com/authentic-starlin-castro-jersey , Paul Goldschmidt is not a part of the Arizona Diamondbacks organization. It’s likely that yesterday’s trade, which sent Goldy to the St. Louis Cardinals in exchange for three young players, may well end up defining the Mike Hazen era, in the same way that the Justin Upton trade was the key moment of Kevin Towers’ tenure, or the Zack Greinke signing was the big move by Dave Stewart. We won’t truly be able to judge the trade for years, until we see how the players pan out - case in point, who predicted that Nick Ahmed would be the most productive piece Arizona would get in the Upton trade? But we can talk about the immediate impact the deal will have, in terms of the line-up and roster for 2019. There are likely three areas which will be affected: we gain a catcher and a starting pitcher, and need to find a replacement for Goldschmidt at first-base. Jack will be along with some updated payroll and WAR numbers later in the week, as we head towards the winter meetings. So this overview will remain a bit more abstract and general, discussing the options that Hazen and Torey Lovullo have, in terms of putting together the pieces now available to them for next season.First-baseThe main uncertainty is, who will be replacing Paul Goldschmidt at first-base on an everyday basis. There’s no denying the magnitude of the issue. Since the beginning of 2012, Goldschmidt started 1,018 times at first for the D-backs. No-one else has fifty starts Miguel Rojas Jersey , with the next most being Mark Trumbo’s 44 games. Only he, Lyle Overbay, Daniel Descalso and Jordan Pacheco have even made five starts for Arizona in that time. There is almost no doubt: the position will be less productive for the Diamondbacks in 2019. But someone has to play there; these are the three most likely candidates, in alphabetical order:Kevin Cron - The 25-year-old Cron was a 14th-round pick by Arizona in 2014, but has put up decent numbers in the minors: an .826 OPS with 112 home-runs over 560 games. Last year, with Triple-A Reno, he had a line of .309/.368/.554 for a .921 OPS, with 22 HR in 104 games. However, the obvious counterpoint: it was in Reno. The current STEAMER projection has Cron being bascially replacement level for 2019. Jake Lamb - The possibility of moving Lamb across the diamond from third to first is something which has been suggested. This would help minimize the impact of his sometimes shaky defense, apparent especially on his throwing. Eduardo Escobar could then play third, with a middle-infield of Nick Ahmed and Ketel Marte. Whether Lamb plays full-time, or is part of a platoon (Cron and Walker are both RHB) would need to be decided.Christian Walker - The only one of the trio with MLB experience at the position, albeit very limited. For Walker has seen playing time for Arizona each of the last two seasons, but almost entirely off the bench. Only six of his 48 appearances were as starts, with four of those at first-base. He put up very similar numbers for Cron in Reno Bryan Holaday Jersey , with a line of .299/.354/.568 for a .922 OPS, and 18 HR in 84 games.If you’re curious, Cron had better platoon splits than Walker against right-handed pitchers last season. Based on those, he’d be the better platoon partner for Lamb, but Walker would likely be a superior full-time option, having hit lefties and righties almost equally well in 2018. PITTSBURGH (AP) — The Milwaukee Brewers used their power to put the Pittsburgh Pirates on the ropes. Some heads-up baserunning — and more than a little help from the mistake-prone home team — pushed the Brewers closer to the club’s fifth playoff berth in franchise history.Christian Yelich, Travis Shaw and Mike Moustakas all hit homers and Milwaukee scored three times on one wild pitch in the sixth inning to break it open as the Brewers cruised to a 13-6 victory on Sunday.Yelich finished 2 for 3 to boost his batting average to an NL-leading .322 as Milwaukee won for the third time in four games to bolster its chances of reaching the postseason for the first time since 2011.The Brewers (89-67) hold the top NL wild-card spot and remained 2½ games behind the first-place Chicago Cubs in the NL Central, as well as two games ahead of St. Louis, which has the second wild-card position. Both rivals also won Sunday.“We won the series. We put ourselves in a good spot,” Brewers manager Craig Counsell said. “Got, again, nice work from the bullpen. We’re in good shape.”The Pirates were eliminated from playoff contention when the Cardinals beat the Giants.Yelich’s hit his 32nd home run of the season in the second — a three-run blast off Nick Kingham (5-7) — and Shaw followed two batters later with a towering shot that bounded over the right-field seats and into the Allegheny River to give Milwaukee a quick six-run lead.“Jumping out against them is huge,” Shaw said. “We haven’t had much success against them. So, to build an early lead was big. They responded, we responded right back. Pretty good day overall for everybody.”Moustakas http://www.marlinsfanproshop.com/authentic-starlin-castro-jersey , acquired in a midseason trade with Kansas City, added his 28th homer of the season, eight of them with Milwaukee. Corey Knebel (3-3) picked up the win in relief after starter Wade Miley failed to record an out during a rocky fifth inning after the Pirates drew within 7-4. Knebel struck out the next three batters and the Brewers were back in control.“That’s a big inning (from Knebel),” Counsell said. “It stops their momentum. They certainly had it at that point. They were feeling good and right back in the game.”WHOOPSWhen the Brewers weren’t knocking the ball around PNC Park, the Pirates were more than happy to help. Milwaukee scored five runs in the sixth with the ball leaving the infield just once. Poor pitching and comical defense by the Pittsburgh did most of the hard work.The Brewers loaded the bases off Pittsburgh reliever Steven Brault, who was then replaced by Michael Feliz with two outs.Feliz walked in a pair of runs, and three more Brewers scored when his wild pitch skipped toward the Milwaukee dugout. Jesus Aguilar trotted home, Ryan Braun raced in behind Aguilar, and when the throw from Pittsburgh first baseman Josh Bell got away from Feliz covering the plate, Orlando Arcia scored all the way from first to make it 12-4.“Never seen that,” Arcia said. “Once the wild pitch started and once I noticed that Braun was scoring too, I figured I had to be ready to see where the throw was, in case it was a bad throw, which it happened to be.”Pittsburgh manager Clint Hurdle simply called it a “bad baseball play.”“Whether there’s confusion or lack of effort or a combination of it going on there? I’m not sure,” Hurdle added.SAYING GOODBYEPittsburgh shortstop Jordy Mercer and second baseman Josh Harrison hit consecutive two-run doubles during a four-run outburst in the fifth. Two of the team’s longest-tenured players exited to loud ovations when they were removed in the eighth in what was likely their final appearance at PNC Park as a member of the home team.Mercer will become a free agent in the offseason Justin Bour Jersey , and the team is likely to decline the $10.5 million club option on Harrison, a two-time All-Star. Both were vital parts of Pittsburgh’s run to three straight playoff appearances from 2013-15. On the day the Pirates were officially eliminated from postseason contention in 2018, they tried to drink in the moment.“It shows the game is going to go on with or without you,” Harrison said. “It’s cool for me and him to see it through with each other. Could be worse. Could be here by ourselves, either him or me or in that aspect. It’s cool to have somebody who was my first friend when I got here see it through with me.”TRAINER’S ROOMBrewers: CF Lorenzo Cain went 2 for 5 in his return to the lineup. Cain missed two games and was limited to pinch-hitting duty on Saturday night with an intercostal strain in his ribs.Pirates: CF Starling Marte was removed after experiencing tightness in his left calf while running down the first-base line in the fourth inning. … C Francisco Cervelli (gastrointestinal discomfort) should return to the lineup in Chicago on Monday. … RHP Edgar Santana is scheduled to undergo tests on Monday after exiting Friday night’s game with tightness in his right arm.UP NEXTBrewers: Head to St. Louis for a pivotal three-game series with the Cardinals, who occupy the second wild-card spot. Chase Anderson (9-8, 3.93 ERA) starts on Monday against Jack Flaherty (8-8, 3.08).Pirates: Begin a four-game series in Chicago on Monday against the Cubs. Jameson Taillon (13-9, 3.24) faces Chicago’s Cole Hamels (9-10, 3.90).