Former Mets GM Billy Eppler joining Brewers as special adviser, AP source says
Former New York Mets general manager Billy Eppler has joined the Milwaukee Brewers as a special adviser for scouting and baseball operations, according to a person familiar with the situation.
The person spoke on the condition of anonymity because the Brewers hadn't announced the hire. SNY first reported Eppler was coming to Milwaukee.
Eppler was suspended last year after a Major League Baseball investigation concluded he directed Mets staff to fabricate injuries to create open roster spots, but that punishment expired after the 2024 World Series.
He had resigned as the Mets' general manager in October 2023 amid that investigation, three days after owner Steve Cohen hired David Stearns as president of baseball operations. Stearns held the president of baseball operations title with the Brewers before stepping down at the end of the 2022 season.
Eppler joined the Mets in November 2021 after working as the Los Angeles Angels' general manager from 2015-20. The Mets went 101-61 and earned an NL wild-card playoff berth in 2022, but slumped to 75-87 the following year despite having a $355 million payroll at the start of that season.
Eppler also has worked in scouting and player development with the Colorado Rockies and as the New York Yankees' director of professional scouting and assistant general manager.
executive of the year last season, has been the Brewers' president of baseball operations since October 2022 after previously serving as Stearns' right-hand man.
___

Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles

13 minutes ago
Peralta, Brewers hand the Cardinals their 6th straight loss with a 3-2 victory
MILWAUKEE -- Freddy Peralta struck out six over six innings of one-run ball and the Milwaukee Brewers scraped out just enough against Erick Fedde for a 3-2 victory over the St. Louis Cardinals on Friday night. After retiring the Cardinals in order through the first three innings, Peralta (6-4) gave up four hits and a walk. St. Louis has lost six straight to fall 1 1/2 games back of second-place Milwaukee and six games behind first-place Chicago in the NL Central. The Cardinals scored a run in the fifth when Alec Burleson and Nolan Arenado opened the inning with back-to-back doubles, and cut it to one run in the ninth on Victor Scott's RBI single off Trevor Megill. Fedde (3-6) also faced the minimum through three. Milwaukee's first hit came in the fourth when Sal Frelick led off with a single that hit Fedde on the left wrist. After getting checked out by the training staff, Fedde stayed in the game and William Contreras put Milwaukee on the board with an RBI double in the inning. The Brewers opened the sixth with back-to-back singles before taking the lead on Contreras' sac fly that brought Fedde's day to an end. The Brewers scored once more in the inning when Christian Yelich reached on a fielder's choice. Peralta is 4-0 with a 1.09 ERA in seven home starts this season. Milwaukee is 6-1 in those contests. Milwaukee LHP Jose Quintana (4-1, 2.86 ERA) was set to face RHP Andre Pallante (4-3, 4.75 ERA) on Saturday. ___


Washington Post
25 minutes ago
- Washington Post
Rays storm back with 6-run sixth inning and hang on to edge Mets 7-5
NEW YORK — Danny Jansen hit a two-run homer to cap Tampa Bay's six-run sixth inning and the Rays came back to beat the Mets 7-5 on Friday night and snap New York's six-game winning streak. Mets starter Clay Holmes exited after five innings with a 5-1 lead, but Paul Blackburn was charged with four runs while giving up hits to four of the five batters he faced. Jake Mangum chased Blackburn with a two-run single and José Caballaro followed with a run-scoring groundout against Max Kranick (3-2) before Jansen hit a 389-foot homer to left on a 2-2 pitch. The Mets stranded seven runners over the final four innings. New York lost at Citi Field for the first time since May 28 and dropped to 27-8 at home. Eric Orze (1-0), who pitched briefly for the Mets last season, earned his first big league win by getting three outs after Rays starter Taj Bradley exited without recording an out in the fifth. Bradley gave up five runs — all unearned. Mason Montgomery, Garrett Cleavinger, Edwin Uceta and Pete Fairbanks — who earned his 13th save — combined for four scoreless innings for the Rays, who won despite committing a season-high three errors and issuing seven walks. Jonathan Aranda homered in the fourth for the Rays. Starling Marte had three hits and three RBIs for the Mets, while Tyrone Taylor hit into a run-scoring fielder's choice in the fourth. Juan Soto drew a bases-loaded walk in the fifth. Fairbanks wriggled out of a first-and-third jam in the ninth by getting Brett Baty to hit into a forceout and striking out Ronny Mauricio. The six runs allowed by the Mets in the fifth tied a season high set on May 18, when the Yankees scored six times in the eighth inning of an 8-2 win. Mets RHP Tylor Megill (5-4, 3.76 ERA) faces Rays RHP Drew Rasmussen (5-4, 2.22 ERA) Saturday. — AP MLB:


New York Times
37 minutes ago
- New York Times
The Mets have a different plan for Kodai Senga's rehab this time
NEW YORK — Kodai Senga's hamstring strain is Grade 1, the least severe, meaning the right-hander will be shut down for about the next two weeks before being re-evaluated and ramped up to return. This places Senga's timeline to be back in the Mets' rotation in the second half of July. 'I feel like it's relatively good news,' manager Carlos Mendoza said. Advertisement The important step now for Senga and the Mets is to ace this recovery process, in a way they didn't with either of Senga's rehabilitations last year. In both instances, it appeared he and the Mets were not on the same page at times. Questions about Senga's next steps or his ultimate timeline were met with shrugs more often than with other players. It's important that the Mets and Senga learn from whatever disconnect existed then and apply those lessons to make this recovery process smoother all around. 'I wouldn't say we weren't on the same page. It was a tricky injury with a few setbacks,' Mendoza said. 'Now that we've gone through it with Senga, I'm pretty confident (in) the communication and the feedback with him. We'll continue to listen to him.' Indeed, going through the experience last season should help this time around. 'A lot of players, but particularly Senga, want to be involved in the process,' president of baseball operations David Stearns said. 'It's important that we get on the same page from the jump and that we're all bought into what this process is going to look like. 'I think we got there last year, but anytime you're going through this multiple times, I certainly know Senga a lot better now than I did last year. Our medical staff has worked through a rehab progression and rehab process with him already on multiple occasions. We feel pretty comfortable that whatever this turns out to be, we're going to be able to work very productively with him to get him back healthy.' That means the Mets being more forthright with their expectations for Senga. Typically, New York looks at a rehab in smaller increments, leaving room for improvisation as the player's health dictates. Taking that approach with Senga, who likes doing things his way, did not provide enough structure, with one team source describing the pitcher on rehab 'like a hot-air balloon in a hurricane.' Advertisement The Mets are fortunate that almost no team in baseball is better equipped to handle the absence of their best starter. New York dealt with losing Senga a year ago, its rotation has been lights out all season, it already has an established major-league starter to step into Senga's rotation spot in Paul Blackburn and it has reinforcements on the way in Frankie Montas (by the end of the month) and Sean Manaea (in July). It doesn't hurt, either, that the team is in first place in the National League East. Nevertheless, making the rehab process smooth for Senga is vitally important to the Mets' end goals. No pitcher on their staff has a higher ceiling than the 32-year-old, who appeared on Cy Young ballots in his rookie season in 2023 and was on pace for his second All-Star nod this season — the kind of pitcher they wanted to throw Game 1 even when he wasn't all the way back in 2024. Looking back on last year's postseason, perhaps the only hypothetical that haunts the Mets is what a fully healthy Senga could have meant for them, especially in their NLCS against the Dodgers. With the rest of the rotation flagging, Senga was rocked in his abbreviated start in Game 1 and pitched only in a mop-up role in the season-ending Game 6. A healthy Senga would have meant two better starts in the series, more aggressive usage of David Peterson out of the bullpen and a better chance of a pennant. This season, the Mets have been clearer in communicating their expectations for Senga. They did it in spring training, lining him up to start the fifth game of the season to better prepare him for the regular season's workload. And Senga has performed exceptionally well, leading Major League Baseball with a 1.47 ERA over 13 starts. Furthermore, new assistant pitching coach Desi Druschel has been especially beneficial for Senga. The two have developed a strong relationship, with Druschel helping prevent Senga from throwing too much. 'He's very meticulous with what he does with his rehab and his mechanics and his throwing program,' Mendoza said. 'I feel like we're in a good place, and I'm not anticipating any issues here.'