Frisbee Slider

Keith Law doesn’t like the trade. Therefore, Brewers win the trade? 🙂🤷‍♂️ In seriousness, we shouldn’t judge the trade based on 2025 baseball card stats, though.

I think the media is getting in our heads. I don’t think our payroll is all that different than last year, even with arbitration increases and Woodruff returning.

It’s about time MLB level the playing field. The differences between the haves and have nots for data on player development are too big to ignore.

The Connor Thomas experience has ended.

Mears struck out 7.3 batters per nine innings last. Way down from 2024 and his career norms. Statcast doesn’t seem to like Collins launch angles or exit velocity and gave him .349 xSLG last year. Collins benefited from some generous BABIP during his hot streak, too.

It is entirely possible both players provide zero wins above replacement level next season. 🤷‍♂️

Mears and Collins could both turn into pumpkins in 2026. Zerpa seems like a guy that can be effective, even if he’s not a needle mover 🙂

Zerpa had 61% ground balls last season. 99th percentile on Savant for GB%.Allowed .326 BABIP which suggests some bad luck. His # 4 similar player on BRef is Jared Koenig.

Zerpa had 61% ground balls last season. Allowed .326 BABIP which suggests some bad luck. His # 4 similar player on BRef is Jared Koenig.

Will Baddoo bat clean up for us by May 1? Bauers had 19 PA batting clean up for us last year. 🙂🤷‍♂️

I look forward to Hoby coming at our left handed batters with the lowest arm angle in baseball.

But are they cracking the door open or fretting over payroll?

Keston Hiura inducted into hall of fame (For Valencia California baseball)

McKinstry had double the bWAR and fWAR compared to Megill in 2025. Plus, McKinstry makes Ortiz, Durbin, Turang, Frelick and Collins better by giving them more opportunities to rest and competes with some of them for playing time. Even if McKinstry regresses, I'd still say he has more WAR and impact on game outcomes than Megill in 2026. We'd all understandably prefer to give up low level prospects. 🙂

What do we think about Spencer Jones from Yankees or Spencer Arrighetti from Houston? Or, Spencer Michaelis, for that matter.

Returning every meaningful piece from a franchise record 97 win team seems like the best possible window to build upon 🙂🤷‍♂️

Image courtesy of © Lon Horwedel-Imagn Images Brewer Fanatic recently examined Milwaukee's positional depth at third base and shortstop. Readers can safely conclude that the current infield reserves are insufficient for a playoff-caliber roster in 2026. One more capable veteran could help prevent the offense from fading in October. One strong candidate to be that veteran addition is Zach McKinstry, Detroit's super utilityman. McKinstry's career was unremarkable until last season. He had his best year ever in 2025, though, producing a .771 OPS while playing competent defense at every infield and corner outfield position. This performance earned him his first All-Star appearance and a Silver Slugger award. Zach McKinstry, Performance Percentiles, 2023-25 Season Batting Runs Fielding Runs Baserunning Runs Bat Speed Arm Strength Sprint Speed LA Sweet Spot % 2023 4 74 82 7 96 80 80 2024 20 70 92 7 58 79 87 2025 44 46 91 4 90 75 96 McKinstry runs the bases well, has excellent arm strength and frequently hits line drives and flyballs with launch angles that are favorable for hits and home runs. At the same time, he doesn’t hit the ball particularly hard in terms of exit velocity and bat speed. Furthermore, it is worth noting McKinstry's extreme home/road splits in 2025. He had a .991 OPS at Comerica Park and .544 OPS everywhere else. McKinstry, a left-handed batter, turns 31 years old in April. He has two years of team control and is projected to earn $3.5 million in arbitration this offseason. This could be a terrific fit for Milwaukee. Their top position-player prospects are unlikely to contribute in 2026, and McKinstry can provide needed depth through 2027. Give Infielders a Break Pat Murphy rarely rested his primary infielders in 2025. It was not until later in the year that Anthony Seigler would earn an occasional start in place of Caleb Durbin. The Brewers' offense ran out of gas in the postseason. An extra day of rest for infielders a couple of times per month could help avert a late-season collapse or a postseason fade. It was clear that Milwaukee did not believe it had a viable alternative to starting Joey Ortiz at shortstop in 2025. Players like Vinny Capra, Oliver Dunn, Owen Miller and Andruw Monasterio have not been legitimate threats to become everyday players anywhere on the infield. McKinstry is good enough to compete for at-bats with nearly anyone in the lineup. Insurance Policy for Outfielders The last thing Milwaukee needs is another left-handed-hitting outfielder. However, McKinstry has reverse splits: he’s hit better against left-handed pitching throughout his career, in limited appearances. He managed an .854 OPS against left-handed pitching (119 plate appearances) and a .746 OPS against right-handed pitching (392 PA) in 2025. Murphy doesn’t seem to mind keeping a few left-handed bats in the lineup, even against difficult left-handed pitching. McKinstry Isaac Collins was terrific through August, but he fell out of favor after slumping to a .664 OPS in September and October. Collins also went hitless in nine postseason at-bats. It is unclear which version of Collins the Brewers can expect in 2026. Garrett Mitchell should be healthy in time for spring training. If Mitchell becomes injured again, McKinstry would fill in nicely in left field with Jackson Chourio heading back to center field. Blake Perkins consistently provides Gold Glove-caliber defense and a .647 OPS, doing exactly that over the past two seasons. Brandon Lockridge figures to be a useful fifth outfielder, if that is more than faint praise. McKinstry doesn’t profile well in center field, but with Jackson Chourio and Sal Frelick each able to play there and Perkins as the defensive ace for the spot, he doesn’t need to. He can shield the team against another injury to Mitchell, and filter into the lineup against both lefties and righties to spell each of the regulars across the grass. Christian Yelich played in only 19 games as a left fielder in 2025. At this point, it seems unlikely that Yelich will spend meaningful time in the outfield. What Would it Take to Acquire McKinstry? The underlying point of this article is that Milwaukee should consider trading from its pitching depth to provide affordable reinforcement for its position players. McKinstry could be an intriguing target. McKinstry doesn’t immediately strike one as being worth a high-leverage reliever in trade. If the Brewers could receive 500 plate appearances from a .750 OPS utility player who plays five positions, though, that might be more valuable than another 47 innings of relief from Trevor Megill. Megill will play his age-32 season in 2026. Like McKinstry, he has two years of team control remaining. His performance could reasonably be expected to regress in 2026, and he dealt with arm trouble at the end of 2025. It is equally possible for McKinstry to revert back to a 1-WAR player. Even in his breakout campaign, he only had an 87 DRC+ (where 100 is average, and higher is better), according to Baseball Prospectus. His track record of success in the majors is short, and some of it might be illusory. Even so, McKinstry has the potential to make the 2026 Brewers a more competitive team by being a credible short-term replacement for anyone on the field. He might cost them a strong prospect or an important relief arm, but he’s a tremendous baserunner; he might have power upside that has been hidden by the spacious Comerica Park; and the Brewers like patient hitters whom they can optimize with even better swing-decision training. The fit could be too good to pass up. View full article

That’s more than Brian Anderson 🙂

It seems likely that a main offseason narrative will be ‘who will win the Freddy Peralta sweepstakes?’ even if the Brewers are not active participants

Megill’s intangible leadership is likely more difficult to replace than his on-field performance as measured by ERA+. The Brewers have had 61 single season performances of 153 ERA+ from relief pitchers with 40+ IP since 1970. Two from Megill, the # 43 and #60 best seasons. 47 relievers produced a 153 ERA+ last season (over 40+ IP) across MLB. Megill is very good but not that rare.

Flexibility for what reason and for whom? And why? 🤷‍♂️🙂

Megill will be 32 years old next week. He has been very good and seems like a leader in the clubhouse, too. At the same time, 6’8” max effort relievers should be expected to regress in their thirties. I am all for keeping Megill. At most we are talking about 47 effective innings, though. If another team wants to overpay for someone with the ‘proven closer’ label, I’d be open to listening. I expect Uribe to get the most saves for Milwaukee in 2026. I also do not think Milwaukee is proactively seeking to trim payroll.

Per CBS Sports: Players who accept the QO remain with their team and cannot be traded without their consent until June 15.

Can’t trade a player who accepts QO until June 15.