Off Season Ideas

[jay87shot]

2 hours ago, TURBO said:

Cabrera would be an interesting get with our pitching lab, but he has been nothing but disappointing compared to his pedigree.

At this point, I'm not sure I'd trade Patrick straight up for him.  :)

I  definitely wouldn't trade Quero straight up for Cabrera, much less throw in Patrick.  I couldn't care less what we do with Mitchell, not a chance this guy is ever going to pan out, I'd rather pawn him off an another team and let them pretend he's going to be a difference maker some day.

Cabrera lowered his ERA by almost 1.5 runs. He lowered his bb from 4.7 to 3.1 bb/9. He averages 97 on his fastball and by runs value his fastball is his worst pitch at -12 runs. They way we help pitchers he will likely soar. He has 3 cheap years, I do agree that Quero and Patrick is hefty but the price of affordable, controllable, young pitching is sky high.

I just think if we lose Woody, Q, and at least after next year Peralta we need some top of the rotation help. Especially with Misi and Henderson not having great 2nd halves.

[SF70]

6 hours ago, jay87shot said:

Cabrera lowered his ERA by almost 1.5 runs. He lowered his bb from 4.7 to 3.1 bb/9. He averages 97 on his fastball and by runs value his fastball is his worst pitch at -12 runs. They way we help pitchers he will likely soar. He has 3 cheap years, I do agree that Quero and Patrick is hefty but the price of affordable, controllable, young pitching is sky high.

I just think if we lose Woody, Q, and at least after next year Peralta we need some top of the rotation help. Especially with Misi and Henderson not having great 2nd halves.

I’ll take 5 years of Patrick over 3 of Cabrera straight up, let alone throw in Quero as well.

Patrick-Gasser-Miz-Henderson-Priester is a strong 5-some moving-forward. Ashby-Hall could both eventually get stretched out if needed, then in addition the organization has Crow-Kuehner-Hunt-Hardin in the uppers and as much projectable SP as any farm system in the game. 

The FO is pretty good at finding “under the radar” pitching so I’m confident they can add who they need to complete a playoff-worthy rotation.

 

[jay87shot]

I like the Misi, Patrick, Priester, Gasser, Henderson starting 5 and I do think there is a decent chance Ashby starts again. However the top of the rotation arms do have some question marks and Gasser and Patrick are likely weak 3's or strong 4's at their best. If we keep Peralta then we don't need anything but if they do trade Peralta it would be nice to get a controllable top of the rotation arm if the price isn't to high.

[SF70]

1 hour ago, jay87shot said:

I like the Misi, Patrick, Priester, Gasser, Henderson starting 5 and I do think there is a decent chance Ashby starts again. However the top of the rotation arms do have some question marks and Gasser and Patrick are likely weak 3's or strong 4's at their best. If we keep Peralta then we don't need anything but if they do trade Peralta it would be nice to get a controllable top of the rotation arm if the price isn't to high.

No way they trade Peralta.

At $8M he’s the best bargain in baseball. The team doesn’t need to re-stock the farm. They, with Peralta leading the way, should have as good a team entering the postseason as any in the game. 

Imo, Patrick has a good chance to be much more than a #3/4 starter. He’s already a solid 3 with his 3 FB’s and with a better off speed he could easily rise to a 2.

 

[jay87shot]

5 hours ago, SF70 said:

No way they trade Peralta.

At $8M he’s the best bargain in baseball. The team doesn’t need to re-stock the farm. They, with Peralta leading the way, should have as good a team entering the postseason as any in the game. 

Imo, Patrick has a good chance to be much more than a #3/4 starter. He’s already a solid 3 with his 3 FB’s and with a better off speed he could easily rise to a 2.

 

I don't think they should either but it has been our MO for the most part. It is kind of like the 3 years of Cabrera vs. 5 of Patrick argument from before. We could get like 6 years of control over say Jonah Tong and a good 2nd prospect as well.

[SF70]

7 hours ago, jay87shot said:

I don't think they should either but it has been our MO for the most part. It is kind of like the 3 years of Cabrera vs. 5 of Patrick argument from before. We could get like 6 years of control over say Jonah Tong and a good 2nd prospect as well.

It was our MO with Burnes and Williams, but not Adames. 

Burnes salary was almost double that of Peralta, and the team still had Peralta to lead their rotation post-Burnes. Peralta is far too important a player and not just performance-wise but chemistry-wise as well, which is why the team kept Adames all the way to FA.

Williams was a reliever on a team with a bullpen factory — easily replaceable, so it was a no-brainer to trade Devin.

 

[jay87shot]

mlbtraderumors released arby estimates

https://www.mlbtraderumors.com/2025/10/projected-arbitration-salaries-for-2026.html

Brewers (7)

• Jake Bauers (5.084): $2MM
• Andrew Vaughn (4.142): $7.8MM
• William Contreras (4.112): $11.1MM (Brewers hold a $12MM club option with a $100K buyout)
• Nick Mears (4.022): $1.6MM
• Trevor Megill (4.002): $4.2MM
• Garrett Mitchell (3.040): $1MM
• Brice Turang (2.165): $4.4MM

We will pay Yeli 24, Freddy 8, Chourio 7.25, and Ashby 5.7 with likely option buyouts of 10 Woody, Rhys 4, Quintana 2, and .5 for Jansen. By my quick math, 30-32 for arby, 45 for player under contract, 16.5 for buyouts and probably like 15 for pre-arby players. That puts us under 110 (around 106-108). Based on this year Sortrak has our 2025 number at 121, I my guess is that we are around that number next year. Maybe like 115 to start the year with some room to add players throughout the year, That really doesn't leave much room to add anything substantial. Maybe with a deep run here Mark would open up the check book for an extra 1 year deal, but that doesn't seem to likely. 

[sveumrules]

Barring a miraculous return and some postseason heroics, I think the lat injury likely torpedoed Woodruff's chances at a multi year deal.

I'd guess the mutual option gets declined and Woody comes back on a one year deal, likely with some kind of option or another tacked on at the end again. 

[TURBO]

6 hours ago, jay87shot said:

That really doesn't leave much room to add anything substantial. Maybe with a deep run here Mark would open up the check book for an extra 1 year deal, but that doesn't seem to likely. 

Man, seeing that in text really pisses me off.

After a season like this, if we still intend to sit on our thumbs rather than adding a BIG BAT, it just pisses me off to no end.

I have accepted that we don't sign big money guys in general, but I still hate the fact that moves like that are still only available to the big market teams.

I really wonder what the Cubs plan to do this off season?  Will they continue to wait on the Counsell magic that just isn't gonna happen, or will they realize that they MUST add some players to contend with us?  lol  That's fun to type...  Screw the Cubs and their weasel of a manager!

[Team Canada]

20 minutes ago, TURBO said:

Man, seeing that in text really pisses me off.

After a season like this, if we still intend to sit on our thumbs rather than adding a BIG BAT, it just pisses me off to no end.

I have accepted that we don't sign big money guys in general, but I still hate the fact that moves like that are still only available to the big market teams.

I really wonder what the Cubs plan to do this off season?  Will they continue to wait on the Counsell magic that just isn't gonna happen, or will they realize that they MUST add some players to contend with us?  lol  That's fun to type...  Screw the Cubs and their weasel of a manager!

Which hypothetical big bat would fit given our current big bats and the positions they occupy? And would the marginal upgrade be worth it for a team that, yes, has to consider the financial limits within which they operate?

Of all the years, this is the most reasonable one to say, "You know what, we're just going to run it back because we're better than everyone else and our young players are just going to get better."

[TURBO]

1 hour ago, Team Canada said:

Which hypothetical big bat would fit given our current big bats and the positions they occupy? And would the marginal upgrade be worth it for a team that, yes, has to consider the financial limits within which they operate?

Of all the years, this is the most reasonable one to say, "You know what, we're just going to run it back because we're better than everyone else and our young players are just going to get better."

I love Durbin, but he is "big bat" replaceable at 3B.

How about a "big bat" OF?  I think we are safe in saying Chourio and Frelick are both going to be regulars in the OF next season.  I don't think Yelich will be there much from here on out.  So with Perkins and Collins, neither of which is a mashing "big bat" to fill the other OF position, we could fit an acquisition there.  Not sure what is out there for attainable SS FA or trade, with one or two year contracts, but we could fit a "big bat" there as well.

I do agree, out of all the years we've had in the past to stand pat, 2026 is probably the safest to do that, however, I want more.  

I'm assuming Vaughn is our guy at 1B in 2026, Turang at 2B, so I doubt we do anything there, unless Turang moves to SS (which I doubt) then we'd have room for a "big bat" 2B.

Keep in mind, I'm just throwing stuff against the wall here, but looking at the team and thinking there are no positions we can get better at with a "big bat" is a bit shortsighted imo.  Of course we can get better offensively, and as good as we are right now, getting even better might be only a bat away.

[Scooterfletcher]

On 10/3/2025 at 8:49 PM, TURBO said:

  I couldn't care less what we do with Mitchell, not a chance this guy is ever going to pan out, I'd rather pawn him off an another team and let them pretend he's going to be a difference maker some day.

We will make a move to the lineup.   Yelich, Chourio, Frelick, Contreras, Vaughn, Turang are filling 7-9 spots.   No movement will happen there.  3B, SS, or OF we will probably target aggressively this off season.   And Ortiz or Durbin as controllable middle infielders is invaluable.

[sveumrules]

2 hours ago, TURBO said:

I love Durbin, but he is "big bat" replaceable at 3B.

Durbin (101 wRC+ | 2.3 WAR) was one of only eleven players to put up at least 2.0 WAR while playing third base this year.

Of the nine guys above him on the leaderboard I would guess that Jose Ramirez (132 wRC+ | 5.5 WAR), Maikel Garcia (117 wRC+ | 4.9 WAR), Junior Caminero (126 wRC+ | 4.2 WAR), Manny Machado (126 wRC+ | 3.8 WAR), Matt Chapman (118 wRC+ | 3.7 WAR), Max Muncy (140 wRC+ | 3.0 WAR), and Isaac Paredes (135 wRC+ | 2.6 WAR) aren't going anywhere.

Eugenio Suarez (124 wRC+ | 3.8 WAR) and Alex Bregman (125 wRC+ | 3.5 WAR) are the free agent options.

 

[sveumrules]

2 hours ago, TURBO said:

How about a "big bat" OF? 

Out of one hundred eleven players with at least 200 PA in the outfield this year Collins came in at 123 wRC+ (24th) and and 2.5 WAR (32nd). Obviously he has fallen out of the lineup after fading down the stretch (120 PA of 73 wRC+ | 0.0 WAR to close the season), and there is a very real chance this was his career year as an older prospect who kind of came out of nowhere.

That said, looking at the guys above him in wRC+ or WAR on that leaderboard and I'm not seeing too many trade targets.

Would perennial rebuilders MIA ship out Kyle Stowers (154 wRC+ | 3.9 WAR) or Jakob Marsee (133 wRC+ | 2.1 WAR) after going 54 W - 42 L (third best record in the NL) from June 13th thru the end of the season?

How about TEX dealing Wyatt Langford (118 wRC+ | 4.1 WAR) if they want to tear it down so soon after flying that flag forever?

Maybe BOS would move one of Jarren Duran (111 wRC+ | 3.9 WAR) or Wilyer Abreu (119 wRC+ | 2.8 WAR) with Roman Anthony (133 wRC+ | 2.0 WAR) and Cedanne Rafaela (109 wRC+ | 4.6 WAR) also in the fold?

Are any of those guys realistically acquirable without giving up Jesus Made? Say a package of Luis Pena or Cooper Pratt / plus Logan Henderson / then Marco Dinges / and maybe even more?

[sveumrules]

3 hours ago, TURBO said:

Not sure what is out there for attainable SS FA or trade, with one or two year contracts, but we could fit a "big bat" there as well.

Shortstop was the worst position on the roster, so it theoretically should be the easiest to upgrade, but I'm not sure I'm seeing many guys among these thirty three with at least 200 PA playing SS this past year who are going to be realistically available for the Brewers.

Someone like Zach Neto (116 wRC+ | 3.2 WAR) is probably taking up the most space in the "good player / bad team" overlap, but the Angels are delusional. They'd probably ask for Chourio and Misio.

If the Rangers are truly tearing it down (& the Brewers aren't part of his limited no trade protection) I'd be interested in Corey Seager, but not sure paying $186M plus prospect capital for the age 32 to 37 seasons of a SS (maybe future 3B) is in the Brewers MO.

[cragi]

yeah i loved the idea of upgrading a bat before the deadline but not in the offseason, unless its a club-friendly trade. Just not necessary. 2026 is a year they could save a ton in salary and still expect to be highly competitive. Then be in position for any midseason adjustment that require money.  They just have a lot of very good arms and bats at several positions that are close to the majors.  No need to block them but if a good deal at SS or 3B comes our way, sure. If they save on salary, they will be in better position to adjust down the road.

[KCBrewerfan34]

10 hours ago, sveumrules said:

Shortstop was the worst position on the roster, so it theoretically should be the easiest to upgrade, but I'm not sure I'm seeing many guys among these thirty three with at least 200 PA playing SS this past year who are going to be realistically available for the Brewers.

Someone like Zach Neto (116 wRC+ | 3.2 WAR) is probably taking up the most space in the "good player / bad team" overlap, but the Angels are delusional. They'd probably ask for Chourio and Misio.

If the Rangers are truly tearing it down (& the Brewers aren't part of his limited no trade protection) I'd be interested in Corey Seager, but not sure paying $186M plus prospect capital for the age 32 to 37 seasons of a SS (maybe future 3B) is in the Brewers MO.

I wouldn’t mind Seager but the Rangers would have to pickup significant $$$$ for us to even consider it. Made isn’t far off, just throwing that out there :) 

[Scooterfletcher]

The “big bat” is more likely to be a Baty/Mayo type we trade for imo.  Not a proven big bat that’s expensive cash wise but a guy they feel is on the verge of 25-35 homer seasons.

[jay87shot]

1 hour ago, KCBrewerfan34 said:

I wouldn’t mind Seager but the Rangers would have to pickup significant $$$$ for us to even consider it. Made isn’t far off, just throwing that out there :) 

As much as I would love Seager (he was a 6 WAR player in 100 games) he has like 6/195 left, The Rangers would need to eat like 100 million and there would be 4-5 teams that would take him and not have to eat much if any of that contract. The only way that a deal could be conceivable would be to send Yeli and some prospects for Seager and a smaller amount of cash and that still is still rough. 

 

[tmwiese55]

Big part of that upgrade discussion will also be whether they feel comfortable moving Turang to SS.  We just have no idea on their internal view on that.  There's definitely a logic in just leaving him where is.  But there's a logic that he was considered GG at SS too and SS is our major major need for upgrade.   

Open to moving Bryce there frees up any infielder for acquisitions since Durbin can do either (probably better suited for 2B).   If they have decided Turang cannot move you're very limited because Durbin shouldn't be anymore than emergency use at SS.

[landoc88]

3 hours ago, tmwiese55 said:

Big part of that upgrade discussion will also be whether they feel comfortable moving Turang.  We just have no idea on their internal view on that.  There's definitely a logic in just leaving him where is.  But there's a logic that he was considered GG at SS too and SS is our major major need for upgrade.   

Open to moving Bryce there frees up any infielder for acquisitions since Durbin can do either (probably better suited for 2B).   If they have decided Turang cannot move you're very limited because Durbin shouldn't be anymore than emergency use at SS.

Turang isn't going anywhere anytime soon. The infield is set for for now and years to come. The odd man out is Joey Ortiz. With the three kids coming quickly and his black hole of a bat he's gone. If the Brewes were to make any upgrades in the field its first base(platoon with Vaughn) or SS.

Edited October 8, 2025 by landoc88

[tmwiese55]

4 minutes ago, landoc88 said:

Turang isn't going anywhere anytime soon. The infield is set for for now and years to come. The odd man out is Joey Ortiz. With the three kids coming quickly and his black hole of a bat he's gone. If the Brewes were to make any upgrades in the field its first base(platoon with Vaughn) or SS.

Maybe misinterpreted.  I meant "moving turang to SS".  Not moving as if in a trade.

None of us have any idea 100% either way on their internal openness to that as the SS solution or not.  If they do think it can happen it opens up tons of options, if not then much less

[landoc88]

1 minute ago, tmwiese55 said:

Maybe misinterpreted.  I meant "moving turang to SS".  Not moving as if in a trade.

None of us have any idea 100% either way on their internal openness to that as the SS solution or not.  If they do think it can happen it opens up tons of options, if not then much less

I just cant see the Brewers moving gold glove 2nd base to ss with the kids coming. If the Brewers decide to move fir a 3rd base power bat Durbin can also slide over to SS.

[tmwiese55]

4 minutes ago, landoc88 said:

I just cant see the Brewers moving gold glove 2nd base to ss with the kids coming. If the Brewers decide to move fir a 3rd base power bat Durbin can also slide over to SS.

Again, we have no idea what they think.    That's all I'm saying, if they're open there's tons of options.  If not, limited options.   We don't know. 

I know in my opinion, Turang at SS and Durbin at 2B is a vastly preferred setup than Durbin at SS and Turang at 2B.  I don't really know how anyone would disagree on that but to each their own.

They very well might have the not moving turang from 2B no matter what mindset, idk.   But if I  was a guessing man I'd guess with how they value D they would also have no intention of Durbin handling SS other than backup/emergency type things

[nate82]

1 hour ago, landoc88 said:

I just cant see the Brewers moving gold glove 2nd base to ss with the kids coming. If the Brewers decide to move fir a 3rd base power bat Durbin can also slide over to SS.

Turang would move to SS before Durbin ever does.  Turang has been a SS for the majority of his time when in the minors.  If it wasn’t for his shoulder or arm during spring training he would have been the starting SS this year.  The Brewers still see Turang as a SS.

The plan was for Durbin/Ortiz at 2B and Turang at SS for this year.