2026 Milwaukee Brewers Opening Day Roster Projection, v. 2.0

Even though Opening Day 2026 is 80 days away, with the flip of the calendar, the temptation to start sketching out what the Milwaukee Brewers will look like in late March has begun to build.

Just over a month ago, we published the first version of our projection of the Brewers' Opening Day roster. Here is an update of that projection for the team that takes the field on March 26 against the Chicago White Sox, at Uecker Field.

PITCHERS
Starting Rotation (5)

1. Freddy Peralta
2. Brandon Woodruff
3. Chad Patrick
4. Jacob Misiorowski
5. Quinn Priester

Ideally, of course, each member of this group would stay healthy and perform well enough to make 30 starts. Reality is the antidote for such delusions, though, and the Brewers have realities both behind and before them that figure to shake up the rotation at some point.

Peralta is high on the pundits' list of stars most likely to be traded, but he is still in the Brewers fold. Woodruff returned from a year and a half on the shelf in dominant fashion, but landed on the injured list again with a lat strain in September. Presumably, he's back in full health right now, but next season will be a new test of the staying power of his shoulder.

Patrick made 23 starts and pitched well enough to earn down-ballot NL Rookie of the Year votes. Misiorowski looked like the Rookie of the Year candidate at one stretch, and has the highest upside of any Brewers pitcher. Priester and his revamped arsenal slot solidly back into the rotation for 2026, after he staked a sturdy claim there in 2025.

If one or more of these five falter, the Brewers have exceptional depth to buttress the rotation. Tobias Myers is the most experienced in that group. Logan Henderson dazzled in his brief opportunities with the parent club, and if he's healthy, he could be every bit as good as Patrick or Priester. Robert Gasser made two starts but spent a lot of time on the injured list. In his return from Tommy John surgery, Coleman Crow made 12 starts at two levels, striking out batters at a rate of 32%, though he didn't find his way to the 40-man roster until the end of the season.

All of their key starter prospects have minor-league options remaining, so if neither transactions nor injuries blow a hole in the side of the ship, this group can wait at Triple-A Nashville for a while. Only Myers and Crow are candidates to do much work in relief for the team.

V 2.0 changes: NONE.

Bullpen (8)

• Grant Anderson
• Aaron Ashby
• D.L. Hall
• Jared Koenig
• Trevor Megill
• Abner Uribe
• Rob Zastryzny
• Ángel Zerpa

On December 14, the Brewers traded Isaac Collins and Nick Mears to the Kansas City Royals for the left-handed Zerpa. In theory, Zerpa replaces Mears in the bullpen, but the Brewers have mentioned that Zerpa could be a candidate for the starting rotation. We will have to see how that shakes out.

The group listed (except newcomer Zerpa) pitched about two-thirds of the 634 2/3 innings Brewers relievers spent on the mound last year; expect to see more of the same. With five lefties and three righties in the pen, manager Pat Murphy has the flexibility to match up with opposing batters. Only Koenig and Uribe stayed healthy all year, and each of them wore down as the season progressed. As is true with the starters, the organization boasts good depth in the upper levels of the minors. There's another bullpen's worth of credible big-league hurlers beyond the group above. Craig Yoho, Easton McGee, and Sammy Peralta would be the frontrunners in that group.

V 2.0 changes: Mears out, Zerpa in.

CATCHERS (2)

• William Contreras
• Jeferson Quero

Quero will probably get his first shot in the big leagues, as the backup to the workhorse and lineup centerpiece that is Contreras. When Contreras is your starter behind the plate, the backup matters less than it does on most teams. Marco Dinges is probably the next-best backstop in the organization not named Contreras or Quero, but he is about two years away.

V 2.0 changes: NONE.

INFIELDERS (6)

• Andrew Vaughn (1B)
• Brice Turang (2B)
• Caleb Durbin (3B)
• Joey Ortiz (SS)
• Jake Bauers (1B-OF)
• Andruw Monasterio (INF)

Tyler Black and Anthony Seigler are both on the 40-man roster, but neither will make the Opening Day roster, barring something unforeseen. Vaughn and Bauers figure to hold down first base, while Turang, Ortiz and Durbin are entrenched (for now) at the other positions on the dirt. Monasterio's role will be filling in for and backing up all three, unless and until more moves come.

V 2.0 changes: NONE.

OUTFIELDERS (5)

• Sal Frelick
• Jackson Chourio
• Christian Yelich
• Blake Perkins
• Garrett Mitchell

Brandon Lockridge, Steward Berroa, and free-agent signee Akil Baddoo are all on the 40-man, but this quintet has the inside track. Lockridge and Berroa might be waived at some point to free up roster spots. Mitchell could be in his make-or-break season; injuries have derailed his last three campaigns.

Frelick has played in center and in right, and the phenom Chourio played every outfield spot last year. The question about the team's superstar-in-training is where he's best suited to play. Our Jack Stern wonders if center field might be the spot for Chourio. Yelich can play left in a pinch, but his best defensive days are behind him. Perkins and Mitchell will battle for playing time in center, and if Mitchell is healthy, Chourio could be back in left field almost full-time.

V 2.0 changes: Collins out, Baddoo in.

A lot can happen over the next two months. The Brewers could add or subtract more players through free agency or trade. This version of the projected Opening Day roster could very well change, but it doesn't need to. Even this version of the roster is a clear favorite to win the NL Central next season.

What do you think about this 26-man group? Am I missing anybody? Who is on your projected card? Feel free to start a conversation in the comments section.