Brewers pitcher wanted out of the NL Central and got the ultimate punishment

Milwaukee Brewers pitcher Aaron Civale wasn't happy with his current situation. The Brewers activated their top pitching prospect — Jacob Misiorowski — earlier this week and Civale, seeing the writing on the wall, demanded a trade. The Brewers granted Civale's wish, but the destination may not have been what he had in mind.

Civale got the unwelcome news on Friday that he was traded to the Chicago White Sox. It could've been worse, I guess; he could've been dealt to the Colorado Rockies. While Civale will now be part of the South Sider's starting rotation, his chances of actually winning baseball games have certainly taken a hit. The White Sox are an AL-worst 23-46 on the year.

The Cincinnati Reds recently saw Civale on the mound during the Brewers' visit to Great American Ball Park earlier this month. The right-hander went 5 ⅓ innings and allowed two earned runs on seven hits while striking out five Reds batters. The Reds lost that game by a final score of 3-2.

Brewers pitcher Aaron Civale wanted out of the NL Central and was traded to the White Sox

The Reds won't shed any tears for Civale, who also caused the Reds fits while he was with the Cleveland Guardians. The 30-year-old had Cincinnati's number over the years. Civale appeared in three games against the Reds and kept Cincinnati's bats in check. Civale went 3-0 against the Reds with a 2.41 ERA and 15 punch outs — five in each start — over 18 ⅔ innings of work. He walked just five batters and posted a respectable 1.179 WHIP.

The Brewers didn't walk away empty-handed. The White Sox traded former first-round flop Andrew Vaughn to Milwaukee in exchange for Civale. Knowing the Brewers' track record, it's quite likely that Milwaukee will somehow be able to coax the best out of the former No. 3 overall draft pick.

Trades are already being made, and it's not even July. No one knows just yet if the Reds are going to be buyers or sellers, and the upcoming gauntlet against the Detroit Tigers, New York Yankees, and San Diego Padres could be quite the litmus test.

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