Brewers Signing Drew Smyly to Minor-League Contract

At age 30, Drew Smyly is suffering through the worst year of his six-year career, posting an horrendous 8.42 ERA in 51.1 innings pitched.

After being traded to the Texas Rangers this past offseason following his two-year layoff after undergoing Tommy John surgery, the pitcher just never found any consistency in his pitches and was cut from the team a week ago. But, it appears he'll still have an opportunity to pitch again this season, as the Milwaukee Brewers are signing Smyly to a minor-league deal.

It's a low-risk, high-reward signing for Milwaukee. Before undergoing Tommy John surgery, Smyly was a solid arm for the Detroit Tigers and Tampa Bay Rays. In his best statistical year in 2013, the lefty had a 6-0 record with an ERA of 2.37 and 81 strikeouts.

It would be great to see Smyly rebound in the Brewers' minor league system considering the downhill trajectory his career has faced. But if we're going off the track record of pitchers who played at a high level following Tommy John surgery, the odds aren't in his favor.

We'll see how he fares in the minors, and if he's able to earn a promotion back to the big leagues.