'I think we believed in ourselves': GM Matt Arnold talks about Brewers' surge and more

Matt Arnold's cell phone never turns off.

But this week in particular is when the Milwaukee Brewers general manager needs to make sure he has his charger within arm's reach at all times, with Major League Baseball's trade deadline looming at 5 p.m. on Thursday, July 31.

Arnold has already consummated one deal, acquiring catcher Danny Jansen from the Tampa Bay Rays in exchange for minor-league prospect Jadher Areinamo on Monday.

But more deals certainly could be in the works, what with the Brewers seemingly in need of another bat as well as, potentially, a reliever. And, as Arnold's former co-worker, David Stearns is fond of saying, deadlines typically spur action.

With that as a backdrop, Arnold carved some time out of his afternoon on Tuesday, July 28 to speak to reporters about a variety of topics with one major caveat: He was unable to comment on the record with regard to potential remaining moves he might be entertaining heading into the deadline.

Here are the high points of what Arnold had to say.

Trading for Danny Jansen

Arnold provided his first public comments on the acquisition of Jansen, an Appleton native who now takes over for Eric Haase as the backup to William Contreras.

“I don’t know if I’d characterize (upgrading backup catcher) as a priority but I’ve made it clear that we’re trying to get better everywhere,” Arnold said. “Really a tough conversation with Eric Haase after the game, after a great win, and what he means to the group. But I think we felt like acquiring someone like Danny Jansen with his track record and his fit, and coupling that with his connections to Wisconsin, just kind of who he is meant a lot to our group as well. 

“Certainly on one hand it’s a tough conversation with Eric Haase, but it was something we wanted to try and insulate in particular with the health of William and making sure we were covered there with our depth.”

William Contreras’s finger injury

Is there concern with Contreras’ fractured finger, which he has played through nearly all season?

“Not any kind of concern. Just protecting downside is something we want to try to do," Arnold said. "That, coupled with what we felt Jansen brings to the team from an intangible standpoint, honestly, which is super important especially in that type of role. (Manager Pat Murphy) and I spoke to him earlier and he already wants to dive in and connect with all our pitchers and that’s a big part of what we were getting.

“I received so many texts from guys yesterday around the league about what kind of person Jansen is. You never know when you make a deal who you’re getting sometimes if you haven’t been around him. Really felt like we got the right guy with Danny.” 

Arnold also acknowledged Contreras might get some more time off with Jansen on the roster.

“I don’t anticipate any limitations on William going forward,” Arnold said. “This is, again, just more about protecting our downside. I actually grabbed William last night after the game and said just so you know you’re still the guy. He goes, ‘I know.’

“...I think it does give us an opportunity potentially to rest him, deploy him, maybe shade him a little bit.”

Was surgery an option for Contreras's finger this past off-season?

“Not that I recall,” Arnold said. “I don’t remember those conversations being that this is going to be something that will limit him. It’s changed his profile potentially but it could be a million different things. I don’t get the sense from him that the finger is limiting him in any way.”

The hope, then, is that Contreras will tap back into some more of his power swing over the final two months of the season.

“His offense has maybe evolved a little bit but I think his swing decisions have gotten really good,” Arnold said. “The power hasn’t quite been the same as what we saw last year but it’s definitely there. You watch his BP and he’s still got mammoth juice. It’s just finding a way to tap into that. He’s the hardest-working guy, probably, on the team. He’s the first guy out there every day and works his tail off.”

How would Arnold characterize the way the team has performed over the last two months, playing its way into the best record in baseball? Has any of this surprised him?

"No, I think we believed in ourselves," Arnold said. "(Pat Murphy) talks about this all the time, and it was the ability to overcome what we did at the start of the season. With what we looked like the first four games, it’s really cool. At one point we had no pitching, and now we have some pitching. And you can never have too much, because that can go away in a heartbeat, too.

"We just want to be careful with that."

Arnold indicated that clubhouse chemistry is a major plus with this year's Brewers, and that any moves that have been or will be made moving forward will have that factored in.

"I feel like this team is super resilient in a really good way," he said. "The thing that gave me the most heartburn with the Haase move is what he means to the group, and you don’t want to mess with that. But we’re trying to get better, and so you have to try to factor that in. That was a huge factor for us, but we’re also bringing in somebody that we think will be great in that role.

"The dynamic is really good right now, and you don’t want to mess with it too much. (Christian Yelich) told me the other day, ‘I kind of want to just go to war with these guys. Like, we’re really not expecting you guys to do anything?’ That’s coming from Christian Yelich, you know?

"That’s pretty resounding in a way where it’s like, ‘If we’re going to go down, these are the guys I want to go down with.’"

What were the expectations for Andrew Vaughn, and is what he's doing sustainable?

Entering Tuesday, the new first baseman was batting .341 with four homers, 15 RBI and an OPS of 1.128 over 14 games since being recalled from Class AAA Nashville in the wake of the sprained left thumb suffered by Rhys Hoskins.

Vaughn has completely revamped his career since coming over from the Chicago White Sox in exchange for right-hander Aaron Civale and cash on June 13; he was slashing .189/5/19/.531 and had been demoted to the Class AAA level by the White Sox, a precipitous drop for the former No. 3 overall pick in the 2019 draft.

"We liked him. Certainly didn’t think he’d have a (1.128) OPS," Arnold said. "I think there were ingredients here that were really intriguing. That’s the question we’re asking ourselves right now – is this sustainable? We have several guys downstairs and upstairs that think this is real, so that’s kind of cool. It’s his swing decisions that have made an enormous jump. He’s just swinging at way better pitches now.

"Our guys have said – our hitting coaches in particular – that this is one of the smartest kids they’ve been around. A Cal kid, high pedigree, smart. Speaks up in meetings, knows the opposing pitcher as well as anybody they’ve ever been around. So, that’s cool to hear.

"I don’t know if it’s real or not, but I hope it is."

What happens when Rhys Hoskins returns?

Hoskins is still rehabbing his thumb, with the goal of beginning a minor-league rehab assignment in late August.

But if Vaughn is still hitting well, and Christian Yelich continues as Milwaukee's primary designated hitter, how will Hoskins be utilized?

"I certainly think there’s a role for him," said Arnold. "There were windows where Rhys was carrying us. He’s been a little up and down at times, but he’s shown flashes of the ability to carry an offense as well as (performing) in big moments and all of those things. So, he’s definitely capable regardless of what we do.

"There’s still a path for him to help the team."

This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: General manager Matt Arnold talks about Brewers' surge and more