How Mets' Juan Soto Megadeal Affects Brewers' Playoff Hopes

The Brewers didn’t exactly miss out on signing Juan Soto. In order to miss out, one needs to be in contention first. With the final tally on this historic deal reaching a nearly unfathomable $765 million, Milwaukee missed out on signing him only the way Rowdy Tellez missed out on Olympic gold in the 200-meter dash. However, that doesn’t mean that they won’t still feel the burn of this contract. Soto returning to the National League after his year with the Yankees naturally means that the Brewers will be playing against him more frequently. It also means that he and his new Mets teammates will now be serious obstacles for future postseason spots.

The NL East is rich with talent, and along with the Phillies and Braves, the Mets form a dangerous three-headed beast that could be perennial October competitors. Only one team can win the division, meaning two East teams could end up occupying all but one of the NL Wild Card spots, a situation that has unfolded three years in a row. Even the Nationals could be on the cusp of elbowing their way into the playoff picture, with young talent like CJ Abrams, Dylan Crews and James Wood. 

In the Central, the choice seems to be between winning the division or missing out entirely. The last time an NL Central team snagged a Wild Card spot was in 2021, when the Cardinals squeezed in with 90 wins. Recency bias would dictate that Milwaukee has a pretty defensible position as kings of the Central, but baseball is a fickle sport and teams can go from winning 107 games in a year to riding the postseason bench, like the Giants.

Speaking of the Giants, their recent acquisition of Willy Adames presents another challenge for the Brewers: finding a suitable replacement for their now-vacant shortstop position. Adames was worth 14.0 rWAR over the nearly four years he spent with the team, and was regularly one of the squad’s most valuable assets. Given San Francisco’s appraisal of Adames reaching $182 million over seven years, it seems doubtful Milwaukee will easily find someone of the same caliber to fill his shoes. They could choose to utilize Joey Ortiz and Brice Turang, but either way, the roster will still be left with a vacant spot somewhere in the infield. Meanwhile, the Giants (arguably still lagging both San Diego and Arizona in the wake of the Dodgers Death Star) got stronger.

So how does 2025 look for Milwaukee? It’s still hard to say, as the organization has yet to make any moves of note this offseason. Last year, Corbin Burnes wasn’t traded until February, and the deal brought back DL Hall and the aforementioned Ortiz, so a big trade deal involving someone like Devin Williams could still be in the works. Furthermore, enticing sleeper and post-hype free agents like Tim Anderson and Aledmys Díaz are still up for grabs, so get them while they’re hot! Jokes aside, don’t expect the Crew to acquire a suitable infield free agent, as this year’s crop is lacking, to say the least.

The Brewers’ front office can’t afford to be ignorant of what they’re now up against in the National League. The Dodgers, Padres, Phillies, and Mets are big-market fat cats (or, in San Diego's case, are willing to pretend to be) and will be recurring threats. The Braves have an abundance of talent on long-term, team-friendly contracts. The Diamondbacks and Giants are waiting on the wings for whatever table scraps are left once the divisions have been carved up. Even within its own division, a dominion so easily conquered for the past few years is full of encroaching enemies in the Cubs and Pirates. The walls are closing in on Milwaukee; their regular-season margin for error is now the smallest it has been in years. Can the organization step up to the plate? Let’s wait and see.