The Brewers have claimed Billy McKinney

The Billy McKinney era is over.

After being designated for assignment in order to open up room on the 40-man roster for Ken Giles to return from the 45-day Injured List, McKinney has been claimed by the Milwaukee Brewers.

This is the second time this season that the Brewers have claimed somebody the Jays DFA’d, as they grabbed Daniel Vogelbach off of waivers after his hilariously short stint as a Blue Jay.

McKinney was acquired back in 2018 from the Yankees along with Brandon Drury in the J.A. Happ trade. That trade never really looked very good and now, two years out, it’s a pretty clear disaster given the fact McKinney is gone and Drury managed to clear waivers.

But, as bad as that trade was, there’s no point in hanging on to players just for the sake of trying to make it work. If McKinney and Drury aren’t part of the long-term plans, that’s the way it is. Cut your losses and move on.

All told, McKinney slashed a .230/.291/.439 line with 18 homers over 122 games with the Blue Jays. He had some pretty decent numbers in Triple-A, but he ultimately got passed on the depth chart by Derek Fisher, who features a better bat, and Jonathan Davis, who has a better glove.

Maybe McKinney can pull it together if he’s given an opportunity in Milwaukee.