Brewers Re-sign Brandon Woodruff - Two Year Deal per Heyman

[bigred]

3 hours ago, wiguy94 said:

Sad to see this thread isn't just people celebrating the Brewers bringing back a fan favorite and one of the best pitchers in franchise history. 

So people are only supposed to post pleasant truths, and never unpleasant truths? 

[Cool Hand Lucroy]

Back when we nearing the end of 2023, I threw out 2/12 for Woody, with the Crew basically giving him a couple mil to rehab in 2024 and then guaranteeing him 10 or 11 in 2025. That seemed like a VERY low-risk deal for the Crew. We'll see if it turns out to be a bit higher. I just see no reason not to do this. Worst case, you're out the value of 1-2 WAR on the open market. I get that 15 mil is a lot for a small-market team, but the worst-case scenario is also not the most likely one.

If I had to guess, I'd say I doubt the money is much more than 2/12, just because I bet Woody tested the open market and didn't find much going for him.

I'm not saying this is going to be great, but it's a great risk as I see it. Even if Woody's not very good, you show some goodwill to a guy who's earned it. Maybe that entices others, or maybe it's just an instance of doing the right thing.

We'll see what the money is. But no way this makes the Crew worse off in 2024 and 2025.

EDIT: by "the right thing," I just mean, worst-case scenario, paying Woody for the value he provided over and above his salary during his pre-arb and arb years, even if the 2025 value doesn't pan out.

[Playing Catch]

I echo all of the thoughts here. One of my favorites, so I'm happy. But I'm not really counting on anything, other than him being a leader in the clubhouse and in the trainer's room. Him being a player-coach for all of the young guys coming up. An overall positive influencer on the organization.

In terms of the money, I suspect that this is one of those deals where Attanasio says to Arnold, "If that's what it costs to get him, go ahead. This contract won't "count" to your player budget. He hasn't merely been an important player for us, but an important part of the organization, and I want to keep good people in this organization."

I truly believe that this deal wasn't merely a, "we need another pitcher" decision.

[StearnsFTW]

2/12 is too much in my opinion, but it's definitely not a big deal.

I'm of the opinion that there's like a 90% chance he's never effective again.  That's why I'm more concerned about the money than most of you here.

Hoping for the best.

 

[torts]

2 minutes ago, StearnsFTW said:

2/12 is too much in my opinion, but it's definitely not a big deal.

I'm of the opinion that there's like a 90% chance he's never effective again.  That's why I'm more concerned about the money than most of you here.

Hoping for the best.

 

Good thang yo opinion don't matta!

[StearnsFTW]

20 minutes ago, torts said:

Good thang yo opinion don't matta!

Well, sure. 

 

His shoulder's opinion is the only one that matters.

[StearnsFTW]

I also find it funny that few seem to care about the money, just "YAY WOODY"!

It's like some of you think you're Yankees fans or something.

Hilarious on a bunch of levels.

 

[homer]

Let's try and keep our opinions about the transaction and less about how emotional you think others should be about said transaction.

[jerichoholicninja]

The fact that it took him this long to sign somewhere and it's back in Milwaukee tells me his shoulder is pretty much toast. That the Dodgers or Yankees or someone else with money to throw around didn't sign him already has to mean the medicals are bad, bad.

[Cool Hand Lucroy]

Re: the chances of Woody being effective again:

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3899910/

Anterior capsule surgery is usually pretty successful, so I think those numbers might even be low. But 68% return-to-sport at the elite level suggests a good chance Woody is back on a major-league mound. Obviously, that doesn't guarantee he'll be effective once there, but I'd put the chances at significantly higher than 10% we get some value than Woody in 2025. Obviously, that's just my opinion, and it very well could be influenced by how much I'm rooting for Woody.

 

[wiguy94]

12 minutes ago, jerichoholicninja said:

The fact that it took him this long to sign somewhere and it's back in Milwaukee tells me his shoulder is pretty much toast. That the Dodgers or Yankees or someone else with money to throw around didn't sign him already has to mean the medicals are bad, bad.

He signed the same day that Liam Hendriks signed. Why would teams have signed him before the 60-day IL became available again? Just some very dramatic assumptions being made.

[RedStickBrew]

5 minutes ago, Cool Hand Lucroy said:

Re: the chances of Woody being effective again:

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3899910/

Anterior capsule surgery is usually pretty successful, so I think those numbers might even be low. But 68% return-to-sport at the elite level suggests a good chance Woody is back on a major-league mound. Obviously, that doesn't guarantee he'll be effective once there, but I'd put the chances at significantly higher than 10% we get some value than Woody in 2025. Obviously, that's just my opinion, and it very well could be influenced by how much I'm rooting for Woody.

 

[MrTPlush]

38 minutes ago, StearnsFTW said:

I also find it funny that few seem to care about the money, just "YAY WOODY"!

It's like some of you think you're Yankees fans or something.

Hilarious on a bunch of levels.

 

Do you think the Brewers, a small market, would sign Woodruff (a guy who won’t pitch all year) to anything that would limit their ability to do anything in ‘24 or ‘25? This isn’t a 5+ year deal, nor is it tens of millions of dollars.

This is like when we signed Neftali Feliz to $5mil or gave Hiura millions to never see the MLB roster. A total waste of money, but it really did nothing in the grand scheme. It’s not something that is going to cause other moves not to happen if they come up.

Our payroll is already much lower than last year and ‘25 figures to be even lower…even if we made some kind of FA splash. Right now I don’t think we have $50mil in salaries for ‘25 if you assume Devin Williams is a stretch to return.

The Brewers would have to go on a shopping spree next winter to get a $100mil payroll, let alone one anywhere near an amount that would cause financial concerns for the payroll.

[MNBrew]

There's obvious risk on the Brewers' part with this move, and I'm glad as heck that they did it.  If Woody can return anywhere close to form, the fact that we have him through '25 is huge.

I'm curious about the money but in the end, I don't care about that, just that we may essentially already have Woody potentially as this year's "bonus" late season/trade deadline addition who's also around for next year, too.

[StearnsFTW]

37 minutes ago, MrTPlush said:

Do you think the Brewers, a small market, would sign Woodruff (a guy who won’t pitch all year) to anything that would limit their ability to do anything in ‘24 or ‘25? This isn’t a 5+ year deal, nor is it tens of millions of dollars.

This is like when we signed Neftali Feliz to $5mil or gave Hiura millions to never see the MLB roster. A total waste of money, but it really did nothing in the grand scheme. It’s not something that is going to cause other moves not to happen if they come up.

Our payroll is already much lower than last year and ‘25 figures to be even lower…even if we made some kind of FA splash. Right now I don’t think we have $50mil in salaries for ‘25 if you assume Devin Williams is a stretch to return.

The Brewers would have to go on a shopping spree next winter to get a $100mil payroll, let alone one anywhere near an amount that would cause financial concerns for the payroll.

I doubt it, but I don't know.

 

When I know I'll have a much more definite answer.  There is concern though.

[markedman5]

2 hours ago, jerichoholicninja said:

The fact that it took him this long to sign somewhere and it's back in Milwaukee tells me his shoulder is pretty much toast. That the Dodgers or Yankees or someone else with money to throw around didn't sign him already has to mean the medicals are bad, bad.

I took,it the other way….  The Brewers have stayed in close contact and would never have signed him if they weren’t encouraged by how his rehab is going. 

[TURBO]

4 hours ago, jerichoholicninja said:

The fact that it took him this long to sign somewhere and it's back in Milwaukee tells me his shoulder is pretty much toast. That the Dodgers or Yankees or someone else with money to throw around didn't sign him already has to mean the medicals are bad, bad.

Maybe he wanted to return to the Brewers all along.  How do we know if he had gotten any other offers?  Maybe he had more than one, and chose to stay in Milwaukee where he is comfortable.  We simply don't know.

[ARBrewerfan]

So what if this was the plan all along?  Woodruff is a very smart player who obviously knows the business. He knew the Brewers couldn’t afford his contract and that they needed to non-tender him. He also knew the Brewers would need roster flexibility this offseason. Was there a handshake agreement to resign at a reasonable rate on the same day as players can be put on the 60 day?  Seems a little coincidental to me. 

[MrTPlush]

2 hours ago, markedman5 said:

I took,it the other way….  The Brewers have stayed in close contact and would never have signed him if they weren’t encouraged by how his rehab is going. 

Sounds like a nice story…but I’m guessing his rehab so far is basically little to nothing and nothing one can really draw conclusions from. 
 

I guess one could be concerned a larger market didn’t try to nab him, but it is more than just money. We have to commit a roster spot to him in ‘25 to start the season. That’s pretty valuable to a team like the Dodgers who can load up on proven/safe bet talent. Banking a roster spot on him just for him to blow is a huge loss. For us, it is a little different as the bottom of our roster is a bit more of a revolving door .

I do think the Brewers were by far his preferred landing spot, so that might have played a role in his decision.

[homer]

3 minutes ago, ARBrewerfan said:

So what if this was the plan all along?  Woodruff is a very smart player who obviously knows the business. He knew the Brewers couldn’t afford his contract and that they needed to non-tender him. He also knew the Brewers would need roster flexibility this offseason. Was there a handshake agreement to resign at a reasonable rate on the same day as players can be put on the 60 day?  Seems a little coincidental to me. 

welcome to the board! 

[yoshii8]

Love it, hopefully he’s able to make a comeback. Would’ve hated to see it with another team.

[thebruce44]

12 hours ago, CheezWizHed said:

Hooray for Big WOO! 

Yeah, there is little chance he pitches in 2024, but hopefully can fully recover for 2025.  I'm glad for Brandon so he can use the Brewer resources to heal. 

This is the biggest take away from me. Happy he can rehab with familiar faces/locals both for him, and for the prospects of recovery.

[BrewerFan]

10 hours ago, Sixtolezcano said:

Shoulder versus elbow injuries have a drastically different possible outcomes.

Then look at Kyle Hendricks. He came back...or Julio Urias. He also came back and was elite.

I tend to trust the Brewers with Woody. They don't just throw around money and their recent history with pitchers should give them the benefit of the doubt. 

[kestrel79]

We did this with Woody, but passed on Jimmy and Kneble who both had similar injuries right? So maybe us paying Woody is a sign they think he looks good so far. Yep trust the Crew right now!

[MrTPlush]

1 hour ago, kestrel79 said:

We did this with Woody, but passed on Jimmy and Kneble who both had similar injuries right? So maybe us paying Woody is a sign they think he looks good so far. Yep trust the Crew right now!

No, we paid Knebel the $5.1mil in arbitration for 2020 after his Tommy John surgery. He then proceeded to hurt his hamstring in that year.