Steve Drumwright

It seems like a Freddy Peralta trade is going to happen; it is getting much closer. According to a report by Michael Marino, who calls himself a national MLB reporter but appears unaffiliated with any outlet, the Milwaukee Brewers wanted young New York Mets right-handed starter Jonah Tong in the return package for Peralta, who is entering 2026 in his final year of team control and is making $8 million before hitting free agency. But the Mets rejected including Tong, the No. 4 prospect in the Mets' system and No. 46 in baseball, per MLB Pipeline. As a counterproposal, the Brewers asked for infielder-outfielder Jett Williams, the Mets' No. 3 prospect and No. 30 in baseball, and right-handed starter Brandon Sproat, the Mets' No. 5 prospect but not a top-100 player. The report said the Mets are not willing to pay that steep a price for one year of Peralta. Tong made five starts for the Mets while making his MLB debut in 2025, posting a 4.31 FIP and 7.71 ERA, with 22 strikeouts in 18⅔ innings. Sproat also made his MLB debut in 2025, putting up a 2.80 FIP and 4.79 ERA in four starts, striking out 17 in 20⅔ innings. Williams, who can play middle infield as well as center field, put up a .261/.363/.465 slash line between Double-A and Triple-A in 2025 with 17 homers, 52 RBIs, and 36 stolen bases in 130 games. Williams also struck out 131 times. View full rumor

Ryan Braun, the 2011 NL MVP with the Milwaukee Brewers, who had two incidents regarding performance-enhancing drugs, failed to receive 5% of the vote for the Hall of Fame on Tuesday and will no longer appear on the main ballot. Carlos Beltran and Andruw Jones were elected to the Hall of Fame. After playing his entire career with the Brewers, from 2007-20, the 2007 NL Rookie of the Year was in his first year on the Baseball Writers Association of America ballot. It was a long shot for him to be elected in his inaugural appearance on the ballot, so the real question is whether Braun would hit the threshold to improve his position in future years. But Braun received only 15 votes from the 425 writers who turned in ballots, or 3.5%. In fact, 11 of the 12 players who were appearing for the first time did not get 5% and are off the BBWAA ballot (Cole Hamels got 23.8%). Players not elected by the BBWAA will be considered by one of the committees and could be nominated for a vote. While Braun has some of the best numbers in Brewers history, he also had two well-publicized incidents involving PEDs. The first came after his MVP season of 2011, when he tested positive and faced a suspension. But he became the first player to successfully appeal on the grounds that his testing sample was handled improperly. Braun admitted to lying about never taking PEDs. Braun was involved in the Biogenesis scandal in 2013 and served a 65-game suspension. View full rumor

After the biggest week of player movement of this hot-stove season, Milwaukee Brewers ace Freddy Peralta remains a hot topic. According to a social-media post by Jon Heyman of the New York Post, five big-market teams are leading the pursuit of the right-hander. Those teams are the New York Yankees, New York Mets, Los Angeles Dodgers, San Francisco Giants, and Atlanta. But Heyman also notes that those five are "among many, many" teams trying to acquire Peralta. This comes after Brewer Fanatic's own Matt Trueblood reported Monday the Brewers were "moving toward a deal" for Peralta, with the Yankees as the most likely fit. Peralta is a hot property as he is making a very affordable $8 million for 2026 before hitting free agency. He is coming off a 2025 in which he posted a career-best 5.5 bWAR with an NL-leading and career-high 17 wins to go along with a 3.64 FIP and 1.075 WHIP for an ERA+ of 154, the highest of his career. Of course, the Brewers could always sign Peralta to an extension. View full rumor

Get ready, Milwaukee Brewers fans. It is less than a month until the three-time defending NL Central champions are back at American Family Fields of Phoenix. Official report dates were announced, with the Crew pitchers and catchers due Feb. 12 and the first full-squad workout Feb. 17. Players in the Brewers' system who are playing in the World Baseball Classic have report dates of Feb. 11 and Feb. 12, respectively, regardless of their organization. Players often report early, especially those bouncing back from injuries or just wanting to get extra work in. The first Brewers exhibition game is March 21, when they host the Cleveland Guardians. The Brewers also host WBC participant Great Britain on March 3, while the annual prospect showcase, Spring Breakout, will feature the Brewers traveling to the Seattle Mariners in Peoria, Ariz., on March 20. The Brewers' last home game in Arizona is the next day, March 21, against the San Diego Padres, with March 22 vs. the Chicago Cubs the last game in the desert at Mesa, Ariz. The Brewers will face the Cincinnati Reds in two exhibition games in Milwaukee on March 23-24. Opening Day for the Crew is March 26 vs. the Chicago White Sox at American Family Field. View full rumor

Image courtesy of © Isaiah J. Downing-Imagn Images Spring training invitations serve two purposes. For the team, the players invited to big-league camp serve mainly as extras for drills, or to make sure certain positions (like catcher) have bodies to handle all the pitchers. But for the players—the prospects who have a hope of one day reaching the majors—a spring training invite is a chance to open the eyes of the coaching staff and front office, possibly even with another team. The Milwaukee Brewers sent out another round of invites that popped up on the transactions page recently. Those went to six players, two of whom were in the Brewers' system last season. Those two are catcher Darrien Miller and infielder-outfielder Eduardo Garcia. Miller was a ninth-round draft choice by the Brewers in 2019 out of a California high school, and has slowly made his way up the system. The soon-to-be 25-year-old played the last two years at Double-A Biloxi, with slash lines of .212/.392/.291 and .192/.381/.329, respectively, in a combined 174 games. Garcia was an international signing in 2018, only playing his first season in the U.S. in 2021. The 23-year-old split 2025 at High-A Wisconsin and Double-A Biloxi, after getting a brief taste of Biloxi in 2024 (10 games). A versatile defender and athlete, he played 58 games at shortstop and 54 in center field between the two stops, while also getting time at third base, second base, and left field. After a slash line of .252/.341/.435 with 13 homers and 47 RBIs in 96 games at Wisconsin, Garcia had a .212/.297/.265 showing with no homers and nine RBIs in 33 games at Biloxi. He also made 22 starts at short this winter in Venezuela for the Cardenales de Lara, who posted the best regular-season record in the league. He had a .324/.395/.581 slash line with six homers and 19 RBIs in 34 games. As for the organization newcomers, right-handers Gerson Gerabito and Drew Rom had previously signed minor-league contracts. You can find more about their path to the Crew here. Shortstop Eddys Leonard signed a minor-league deal in November and just formally got his invite. Leonard, who turned 25 in November, was originally signed by the Los Angeles Dodgers as an international free agent in 2017 and was still a top prospect in 2022, with MLB Pipeline ranking him eighth in the system. But the Dodgers cut him loose in 2023, trading him to the Detroit Tigers after designating him for assignment. After the 2024 season, Leonard was DFA'd by the Tigers, but returned on a minor-league deal. Late in spring training, the Tigers released him. Atlanta scooped up Leonard a few days later, and he put up a .239/.304/.435 slash line with 20 homers and 61 RBIs in 126 games at Triple-A Gwinnett. Last, but not least, is outfielder Greg Jones, the only one of this group to have played in an MLB game. Originally a first-round draft pick (22nd overall) by the Tampa Bay Rays out of North Carolina-Wilimington in 2019, Jones has appeared in nine MLB games over the last two seasons: six with the Colorado Rockies in 2024 and three with the Chicago White Sox in 2025. Jones has a career minor-league slash line of .262/.346/.434 with 51 homers and 194 RBIs in 380 games across six seasons, but his calling card is his speed and defense. He has 172 steals in 197 attempts, with a career-high 46 swipes in 2024. He signed about a month ago, but the Brewers' transaction log called Saturday's move a signing as well. Both moves are on Jones's MLB.com player page. There will be more spring invites handed out, especially to some of the Crew's top prospects, as we get closer to pitchers and catchers reporting in less than a month. View full article

Tyler Black, a Milwaukee Brewers prospect yet to establish himself in MLB, has garnered a spot on Canada's World Baseball Classic roster. That came as a result of Los Angeles Dodgers superstar first baseman Freddie Freeman withdrawing from a third appearance with Canada in the WBC due to personal reasons. Black, a first and third baseman who has also played a little left field, ranks 24th among Brewers prospects. While having a solid .270/.399/.442 slash line with 42 homers and 222 RBIs across five minor-league seasons, Black has only seen 23 games of action at the MLB level with the Brewers, with a .211/.357/.263 slash line. Canada has never advanced out of pool play in its five WBC appearances. View full rumor

Image courtesy of © Mike De Sisti / Milwaukee Journal Sentinel / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images The Milwaukee Brewers were one of nine MLB teams to cancel their contract with Main Street Sports Group, which produces games for TV under the moniker of FanDuel Sports Network. Main Street Sports Group is the former Diamond Sports Group, which filed for bankruptcy a couple of years ago and threw the local TV rights for many MLB, NBA, and NHL teams into a murky situation. Main Street has recently missed payments to a handful of teams, which led to this latest action by the nine teams that remain with Main Street. The other teams that joined the Brewers in severing ties for Main Street, at least for the moment, are Atlanta, the Cincinnati Reds, the Detroit Tigers, the Kansas City Royals, the Los Angeles Angels, the Miami Marlins, the St. Louis Cardinals, and the Tampa Bay Rays. So what does that mean for Brewers fans? Let me try and help you out. Will Brewers games still be on TV this season? Yes. And it will be with all the familiar faces in Brian Anderson, Bill Schroeder, Sophia Minnaert, Jeff Levering, Vinny Rottino, and Tim Dillard calling the action, barring any changes to that cast. The studio show, typically hosted by Craig Coshun, will stay, too. The difference will be that the games, at this point, will be produced through MLB. The only difference is that Brewers games might appear on a different channel on your cable provider and will likely be branded as Brewers.TV. There is also a possibility that a local station could pick up a handful of games, with the majority appearing on Brewers.TV. Will I be able to stream games? Yes. While it is too early in the process for any announcements by the Brewers or MLB, the San Diego Padres and Arizona Diamondbacks have been streaming through MLB for a couple of years now, with the Cleveland Guardians, Colorado Rockies, Minnesota Twins, and Seattle Mariners joining the fray last season. Those teams offer fans in the local market a team-specific package of $19.99 per month or $99.99 for the entire season. Games can be watched through MLB.tv, but a Brewers package would be in addition to the typical MLB.tv offerings. MLB.tv is typically offered at $149.99. Who is to blame for this? Main Street Sports Group, mostly. Despite filing for bankruptcy a few years ago when it was known as the Diamond Sports Group, Main Street Sports Group appeared to have righted the ship for 2025 after emerging from that process, which was overseen by a judge. Cable companies seek premium fees to carry regional sports networks like FanDuel Sports Network. Main Street recently missed payments to all of its NBA teams, as well as MLB's Cardinals. The Athletic reported that Main Street lost $200 million in 2025 from 29 MLB, NBA, and NHL teams. MainStreet has been in talks with DAZN, another sports streamer, to sell a majority stake in the company, according to The Athletic. What does this mean for the Brewers? Unfortunately, it means less revenue. In each of the last two years, the Brewers received $35 million to have their games carried on FanDuel Sports Network. At the moment, that money is gone for 2026, although a renegotiated deal with Main Street is possible, and that would likely mean a lower fee for the Brewers. Even if there is a sale to DAZN, that does not guarantee the Brewers a similar $35 million annual fee. The Brewers also will not receive any money from MLB. There was an MLB program that ran in 2024 to help out the teams affected, but it was discontinued after that season as more teams started losing their TV home, according to The Athletic. View full article

Image courtesy of © Michael McLoone-Imagn Images If you're a baseball fan, someone can mention a number in a random conversation and you instantly picture a player or two, possibly related to your favorite team. With the calendar flipping to 2026 a few days ago, I thought I would take a look at which players in Milwaukee Brewers history have worn No. 26. Depending on your Brewers fanaticism, you should have been able to come up with a couple—more if you are a true sicko (complimentary). The Brewers have a pretty solid group of players who have donned the number; most of the top 10 players to wear No. 26 had significant roles. Where this challenge became difficult was filling out a lineup, as some positions don't have much of a history of players wearing it. For one spot, I couldn't find anyone who had the number. This list is in no particular order. Aaron Ashby, LHP We might as well start with the current wearer of the number. Ashby was a much-hyped prospect after being a fourth-round pick in the 2018 draft. Originally thought of as a starter, the left-hander has been put in a relief role the last two seasons and excelled. Since returning from the minors in June 2024, Ashby has pitched in 57 games and posted a 2.73 FIP and 176 ERA+. At times this season, it seemed like Ashby was pitching in every game, which demonstrates his ability to bounce back from outing to outing. Ashby is on pace to break the record number of seasons of wearing the number, counting the 2023 season he missed due to left labrum surgery. Jeff Cirillo, 3B For some Brewers fans, Cirillo was the first player they grew to love. Some of that was because when he played for the Crew (1994-99), it was a pretty rough stretch in team history, finishing in fifth place three of those six seasons. Cirillo could hit, and also played pretty good defense at third base. Three times, Cirillo hit better than .320, but he only had modest power, topping out at 15 homers (twice). Languishing on a bad team that was about to move into a new stadium, Cirillo was traded in December 1999 to the Colorado Rockies, along with left-handed starter Scott Karl, in a three-team deal that included the Oakland A's. The Crew received catcher Henry Blanco and right-handers Jamey Wright and Jimmy Haynes. Cirillo currently is the record-holder; he wore No. 26 for six seasons. Manny Parra, LHP Parra came along just as the Brewers were turning the corner. The left-handed starter made his debut in 2007 with nine appearances, including two starts. He joined the rotation in 2008, starting 29 of 32 games and having a 4.16 FIP and 96 ERA+, winning 10 games on the Brewers team that broke the lengthy playoff drought that started after their lone World Series appearance in 1982. However, his first two seasons were wearing No. 43. He switched to No. 26 in 2009. After a rough 2009 in the rotation with a 4.88 FIP and 6.36 ERA, he transitioned into a relief role during the 2010 season, coming out of the bullpen for 26 of his 42 games. He missed the entire 2011 season due to back surgery, with 2012 being his final year with the Crew. Glenn Braggs, LF-RF Like the first three on this list, Braggs was a Brewers draft choice, selected in the second round in 1983. The burly corner outfielder made his big-league debut in 1986, originally as No. 36 but then switching to No. 26. Braggs would be a stalwart in the outfield, flipping between right and left, and put up a .255/.312/.395 slash line before he was traded to the Cincinnati Reds in June 1990. Despite his good size (6-foot-3, 210 pounds), Braggs never hit more than 15 homers with the Crew (1989), but did have double-digit steals twice. Damian Miller, C Miller, a Wisconsin native, came to the Crew at the end of his career, signing before the 2005 season as a 35-year-old. He was not only a pretty good catcher, but could still hit a bit. In his three seasons in Milwaukee, Miller had a slash line of .257/.324/.391, not far from his .262/.329/.411 for his 11-year career. Miller only played in 58 games, but had a really cool moment. It was La Crosse Day at the Brewers when the La Crosse-born and former Viterbo College (you guessed it, La Crosse) backstop hit a three-run walk-off homer in the 11th inning. Miller grew up in nearby West Salem, where he went to high school. Kyle Lohse, RHP Like Miller, Lohse came to the Brewers as his career was coming to a close. He signed a three-year, $33-million contract just before Opening Day 2013, one of the first players afflicted by the burden of the qualifying offer. He came over from the St. Louis Cardinals, where he had spent the previous five years and helped eliminate the Brewers in the 2011 NL Championship Series. Lohse proved to be worth the money, particularly the first two seasons. He put up a FIP of 4.08 and 3.95 in 2013 and 2014, respectively, while chewing up nearly 200 innings each year. But 2015 was a struggle, as he posted a 5.14 FIP. That led to him being shifted to the bullpen, as only 22 of his 37 games were starts. Bob Coluccio, CF Coluccio is technically the first Brewers player to wear the number, but not the first in franchise history. In 1969, there were two members of the expansion Seattle Pilots who wore the number before the team moved to Milwaukee just before the 1970 season. The very first one was third baseman Mike Ferraro, who only appeared in five games before being traded to the Baltimore Orioles, who then traded Ferraro back just before Opening Day in 1973 (he then wore 33). Catcher Merritt Ranew wore the number for the rest of the 1969 Pilots season. Coluccio was a 17th-round draft choice of the Pilots in 1969 and made his debut with the Brewers in 1973. He was a good defender who didn't hit much, compiling a .221/.309/.362 slash line. Taylor Jungmann, RHP Jungmann was the first of two top-15 picks the Brewers had in the 2011 draft, taken 12th; left-handed starter Jed Bradley went 15th. (Bradley made six MLB appearances, all in 2016 with Atlanta.) A right-handed starter, Jungmann made it to the majors with the Brewers, with his debut coming in 2015. He had a good rookie season, making 21 starts with a 3.92 FIP and 105 ERA+, including one complete game. In the Opening Day rotation for 2016, Jungmann was roughed up in five April starts, allowing 22 runs in 20⅔ innings, and sent to Triple-A Colorado Springs to right himself. But things only got worse there. He would come back for three late-season appearances. He made one early-season relief appearance the next year before being optioned back to the minors, where he spent the rest of 2017. He was released in January 2018 to pursue an opportunity in Japan. Matt Wise, RHP Wise joined the Brewers for the 2004 season, after being released by the Los Angeles Angels. He only wore No. 26 in his first season, switching to 38 after the Brewers signed Miller before the 2005 season. Wise was a key member of the Crew's bullpen in each of his four seasons. In 175 relief appearances covering 215 innings, Wise put up a 3.91 FIP, good enough for a 112 ERA+. Wise is entering his third season as the bullpen coach for the Chicago White Sox. Dick Davis, LF Davis wasn't selected in the draft coming out of Compton (Calif.) High School, and signed with the Brewers as an undrafted free agent in 1972. The outfielder worked his way through the minors and had a breakthrough season in 1977, his first with Triple-A Spokane. He put together a .355/.391/.523 slash line in 114 games, earning a July promotion to make his debut. He had two stints with the Brewers that season, compiling a .275/.278/.314 slash line in 22 games. Davis spent the 1978-80 seasons on the MLB roster, carving out a role as a pinch-hitter and backup outfielder. He hit a career-high 12 homers in 1979 and saw his most action with the Brewers in 1980, appearing in 106 games. He finished his Brewers tenure with a .264/.291/.390 slash line. Davis was traded in spring training 1981 to the Philadelphia Phillies, for left-handed starter Randy Lerch. All-26 lineup Catcher: Damian Miller First base: Dick Davis (never played the position, but no one who wore 26 did) Second base: Brian Giles (original flavor) Third base: Jeff Cirillo Shortstop: Juan Bell Left field: Glenn Braggs Center field: Bob Coluccio Right field: Kevin Bass Right-handed starter: Kyle Lohse Left-handed starter: Manny Parra Reliever: Aaron Ashby View full article

Frank Cairone, a left-handed pitcher who was a second-round draft choice by the Milwaukee Brewers in 2025, is in a New Jersey hospital following a car crash on Friday. In a statement released Saturday, the Brewers said, "Frank is currently being cared for at a hospital in New Jersey with the support of his family. The Brewers’ thoughts and prayers are with Frank and his family during his difficult time." No other information has been released. According to NJ.com, Cairone was injured during the collision new his home in Franklinville, N.J. Cairone had to be flown to a hospital in Atlantic City, N.J., for treatment, a source close to the family told NJ.com. Police said Cairone was driving a vehicle when another driver failed to stop at a stop sign and slammed into Cairone's car. Cairone is a 6-foot-2, 195-pound left-hander who was taken by the Brewers with the 68th pick of the 2025 draft, a supplemental choice the Brewers received for not signing 2024 pick Chris Levonas, a right-handed pitcher also from New Jersey who instead honored his commitment to Wake Forest. Cairone, who turned 18 in September, signed for a $1.1 million bonus instead of going to Coastal Carolina, but did not make his professional debut, instead spending time at the Brewers' complex in Arizona. Cairone is the 26th-ranked prospect in the Brewers' system, per MLB Pipeline. View full rumor

Freddy Peralta's name has popped up quite a bit this offseason in trade rumors. With the price of starting pitching being what it is, it wouldn't be surprising to see the Milwaukee Brewers trade the right-hander who has started the last two Opening Days. But I am here to say the Brewers should do the opposite of that. Not only don't trade him, but don't even let Peralta get any closer to free agency than he already is. Peralta is the perfect player for the Brewers to invest in with a contract extension. Why? A combination of performance, character, and commitment — not to mention how much the fans love Peralta. The Brewers are entering an interesting phase in franchise history. There are a number of young players who will be around for another few years, with a few highly rated prospects likely to be ready to make their MLB debuts in 2026 or 2027. And with the Brewers coming off their third straight NL Central championship, it is time to slightly change the narrative that the Crew have nationally. That is where Peralta comes in. Peralta endeared himself to Brewers fans when he made his MLB debut on Mother's Day 2018. The team was in desperate need of a starting pitcher for the finale of a four-game series vs. the Colorado Rockies when they summoned a fresh-faced 21-year-old Peralta from Triple-A Colorado Springs. Peralta had been scheduled to start the day before Mother's Day for the Sky Sox, with his mom and dad making the trip from the Dominican Republic. Instead, the fortunate timing allowed his parents to see their son make his MLB debut — and Peralta turned in a memorable performance. He took a no-hit bid into the sixth inning, finally giving up a lone hit in 5⅓ innings, walking two but striking out a whopping 13 in a 7-3 win over the Rockies. It was the start of something special for Peralta, who was one of three lottery tickets the Brewers acquired from the Seattle Mariners in December 2015 for first baseman Adam Lind. Like Peralta is now, Lind was entering the final year of a club-friendly contract extension going into 2016. Peralta would make one more start before going back down to Triple-A, but came back a month later and mostly remained in the rotation as the Brewers went on to win the Central and lost in seven games to the Los Angeles Dodgers in the NL Championship Series. Before the 2020 season, Peralta signed a club-friendly five-year, $15.5 million contract that included club options for 2025 and 2026 at $8 million each. That covered two pre-arbitration years and all three trips to arbitrations, with the options buying out his first two free-agent seasons. At the time, Peralta had been bouncing between the rotation and the bullpen and was in competition to be the No. 5 starter. That investment has more than paid off. Following the pandemic-shortened 2020 season, Peralta has been a rotation mainstay, watching as Corbin Burnes and Brandon Woodruff led the starting staff. But due to the Brewers trading Burnes, the 2020 NL Cy Young Award winner, and the shoulder injury to Woodruff at the end of the 2023 season, Peralta was thrust into a leadership role. Not having to worry about free agency due to the extension, Peralta thrived. From 2021-25, Peralta made 139 starts and two relief appearances, staying healthy with the exception of a 2022 strained right shoulder that cost him a couple of months. He put up a 3.65 FIP in those five seasons with a 126 ERA+ and 1.093 WHIP. He has struck out 29.5% of hitters while walking 9% and excelled at limiting hits, allowing just a .199 opponent batting average. The biggest knock on Peralta is his propensity to give up home runs — giving up 73 over the last three years — but by keeping runners off base, those are usually solo shots. That all resulted in a breakthrough in 2025, where he led the NL with 17 wins and struck out at least 200 for the third straight season. He finished fifth in the NL Cy Young Award balloting. But now is the time for the Brewers to pay up. Sure, Peralta will pitch 2026 on his $8 million contract. But before he starts for a third straight Opening Day, the Brewers need to show him some love for two reasons. First, Peralta has earned his payday. The interest in other teams seeking his services for 2026 shows that. Second, the players coming up in the system need to know there is a chance for them to earn a similar opportunity, not just knowing their tenure with the Brewers will likely be up when they go through the arbitration cycle three times — or even before. Peralta has provided leadership to the other young pitchers and position players. Just look at how he talked with Jackson Chourio during his rookie season of 2024, following some outfield misadventures, and how Chourio responded. With other Latin American prospects on their way in infielders Jesus Made and Luis Pena, seeing Peralta in the clubhouse on a daily basis will be a source of comfort and guidance as they adjust to the rigors of daily life as an MLB player. What does a Peralta extension look like? I'm not that smart, but with the qualifying offer next offseason probably in the $23 million range, Peralta should be able to land something close to a $30 average annual value for at least five years. Can you imagine the smiles on Peralta's face if he lands that type of deal with the Brewers? View full article

Image courtesy of © Jayne Kamin-Oncea-Imagn Images It's that time of year when we make silly promises to ourselves, in order to try and be better people in the next 12 months. Those can include going to the gym (yeah, right), being better with our finances, or learning to do something new. But how to approach that from a baseball fan's point of view can be very different. All you can do is hope that certain things improve. With that in mind, here are three things Milwaukee Brewers fans should resolve to do in 2026. 1. I resolve to think unconventionally. Think of three players who were vital to the Brewers' success and where they started the 2025 season. The first is Caleb Durbin. Acquired in the Devin Williams trade from the New York Yankees, Durbin was beaten out for an Opening Day roster spot by Oliver Dunn and Vinny Capra, and started at Triple-A Nashville. Durbin was thought to be more of a second baseman at the time of the trade, but with Brice Turang entrenched there, Durbin shifted to third base during spring training, where it was said he didn't have the arm for the position. All he did was earn a mid-April promotion to make his debut, and never look back. He was a nice contributor offensively, finishing with a .256/.334/.387 slash line, but even more surprisingly, he was a rock defensively at third base. Up next is Quinn Priester. The right-handed starter also started 2025 at Triple A, but was in the Boston Red Sox organization. Due to major starting pitching issues in the first two weeks of the season, the Brewers swung a deal for Priester, sending outfielder Yophery Rodriguez, right-handed starter John Holobetz and a Competitive Balance Round A pick to the Red Sox. At the time, Rodriguez was the No. 7 prospect for the Brewers, according to MLB Pipeline, while Holobetz, a fifth-round pick in 2024, was just getting his feet wet in pro ball, with 31 strikeouts in 24 innings. The draft choice, No. 33 overall, turned out to be pitcher Marcus Phillips. The price seemed steep at the time, but it may end up a bargain. Priester still has four more years of team control and will be in the Opening Day rotation for 2026, after going 13-3 with a 4.01 FIP and 125 ERA+. The last piece of this puzzle is Andrew Vaughn. Like Durbin and Priester, the first baseman was picked up in a trade after spending time stuck in Triple A for another team. Vaughn had been the No. 3 overall pick in the 2018 draft by the Chicago White Sox, but fell out of favor with a team that had the most losses in MLB history in 2024 and was sent to Triple-A Charlotte after two poor months in 2025. When acquired in mid-June for disgruntled right-hander Aaron Civale, Vaughn was a reclamation project, with the Brewers hoping to ignite a spark in the first baseman. It worked. After a brief time at Nashville and called up to fill in for the injured Rhys Hoskins, Vaughn homered off Los Angeles Dodgers right-hander Yoshinobu Yamamoto in his very first plate appearance. That would be the first of nine homers, to go along with a .308/.375/.493 slash line and 46 RBIs in 64 games. He enters 2026 as the starting first baseman. There will certainly be situations in 2026 where the Brewers will pluck a player from the unknown, and he could be key to their success. Don't expect all contributions to come from the usual places. 2. I resolve not to covet players out of the Brewers' price range. When the trade deadline rolls around, the Brewers will have a need of some sort, whether due to injury or lack of production. There will be a player or two on other teams whom fans will clamor for, but they won't be realistic targets due to their financial price tag. That is life as a Brewers fan. The front office shops at Target, not at Saks Fifth Avenue—and it usually works. Whether it's a corner infielder or a pitcher who would bolster the team's chances, don't look at the names all the MLB insiders are always talking about. Look a little bit deeper at some of the options that won't cost a big package of prospects to acquire. Consider what president of baseball operations Matt Arnold did at the 2025 trade deadline. He went out and got right-handed reliever Shelby Miller from the Arizona Diamondbacks for cash and backup outfielder Brandon Lockridge from the San Diego Padres for left-handed starter Nestor Cortes, who didn't have a spot on the Brewers' roster. While Miller didn't work out due to injury, Lockridge was surprisingly thrust into an immediate role due to an outfield shortage, and is a reason why the Brewers parted ways with Isaac Collins, who finished fourth in the NL Rookie of the Year voting. 3. I resolve to believe in the unbelievables. There are two players seemingly on the spot for 2026: shortstop Joey Ortiz and center fielder Garrett Mitchell. Ortiz is in the spotlight because he plays the most important defensive position, but took a major step back offensively in his second season with the Brewers after being part of the return in the Corbin Burnes trade. In his first season as a starting big-league shortstop, he was excellent defensively, committing just one error after June 29 and nine for the season. Anything in his vicinity, you had confidence he would make the play, whether routine or difficult. But the opposite was true when Ortiz was at the plate. After a .239/.329/.398 slash line in 2024, Ortiz put up a .230/.276/.317 mark in 2025. While the average was similar, Ortiz lacked the plate discipline, seeing his walks drop from 56 to 27. He popped out at an incredible rate. He came up with the bases loaded plenty of times, and went a paltry 5-for-30 (.167) with 16 RBIs, grounding into three double plays. MLB.com's Adam McCalvy detailed a lot of the numbers that went into Ortiz's poor offensive season. Having an offseason to reset and work on his offense can only help. Getting any semblance of offense from Ortiz in 2026 will be huge. Mitchell is a much different case. Like Ortiz, Mitchell plays very good defense at a prime position, center field. But since making his MLB debut in late August 2022, Mitchell has played in a grand total of 141 games with 443 plate appearances, due to a number of injuries. In 2023, he played in just 19 games following a torn left labrum in his shoulder while diving back into a base. In 2024, a fractured left index finger with a week left in spring training kept him sidelined until July. Last year, he strained his left oblique on April 25. During a rehab stint in June, he reinjured his left shoulder, which required season-ending surgery. His most extensive action was in 2024, when he played the final three months and posted a .255/.342/.469 slash line with eight homers and 11 steals in 69 games. Mitchell, the Brewers' first-round draft choice in 2020, would make the Brewers' offense that much more dynamic if he could stay healthy. Despite not yet playing a full season's worth of games, Mitchell has been on the MLB roster long enough that he is arbitration-eligible this offseason. He is projected to earn $1 million by MLB Trade Rumors, a number that will go up after 2026. This is a case where the Brewers would be happy to see that number spike a bit, as it would mean Mitchell was on the field and made an impact. View full article

Image courtesy of © Mark Hoffman / Milwaukee Journal Sentinel / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images Christmas was last week, but we here at Brewer Fanatic have one more gift to give you: The top stories you, the Milwaukee Brewers fan, enjoyed the most in 2025. Money, one particular trade target, a career resurrection with its impact, and an injury to a star player were the topics you read the most. Here is a recap: 5. Cashing In Headline: "How Much Money Did Brewers Make in First Sustained Playoff Run Since 2018?" Author: Matthew Trueblood Publish date: Oct. 19 Summary: There was good news, but it certainly didn't offset the bad news about how the Brewers' season ended. While the Brewers' amazing season came to a sudden and stifling halt with the four-game sweep by the eventual World Series champion Los Angeles Dodgers in the NL Championship Series, there was a financial boon to the 2025 season. Unfortunately, it wasn't as much money as it could have been had the Brewers won at least one game vs. the Dodgers. As Trueblood details, the Brewers (and Dodgers) would have received a much bigger chunk of change had the NLCS been extended past the required four games, with "the two teams playing divided roughly 85% of the gate." MLB takes a bulk of the gate revenue from the basic number of games for each postseason series. "In other words, for sold-out Games 3 and 4 at Dodger Stadium, the Brewers only got (as a rough estimate) $3 million," Trueblood wrote. "They probably made more like $2 million at the gate for Games 1 and 2 at the smaller, lower-priced Uecker Field. By contrast, Game 5 could have netted the Brewers a solid $5 million by itself, and Games 6 and 7 would have been worth nearly as much, in gates alone." It all added up to what Trueblood estimates was a $30 million windfall for the Crew. As anyone would do, Trueblood hypothesizes how the Brewers would use that newfound cash. With other contracts coming off the books and some raises taking effect through arbitration or contract extensions, Trueblood said the Brewers could spend $50 million to bring in new talent. "Given the money they just made this fall and any reasonable revenue projection for next season, the Brewers should be back over $125 million next year, which means that they can go make aggressive moves in free agency or on the trade market," Trueblood wrote. "That kind of freedom, for a team that also has a cadre of young stars and one of the game's best farm systems, should scare even the mighty Dodgers." 4. A New Beginning Headline: "Andrew Vaughn Creating a Fantastic Problem for Milwaukee Brewers, and a Real One for Veteran Slugger" Author: Jake McKibbin Publish date: July 29 Summary: July was the month of Andrew Vaughn. The first baseman, who had been acquired from the Chicago White Sox in mid-June for starting pitcher Aaron Civale, had been relegated to Triple-A by the AL's worst team and had a new lease on his baseball life with the Brewers. After a couple of weeks at Triple-A Nashville, Vaughn was called upon to replace the injured Rhys Hoskins. That moment turned out to be monumental for both players. There was little doubt as to Vaughn's talent, having been the No. 3 overall pick of the 2019 draft out of Cal, but he hadn't had the success expected of him and, in fact, struggled so much that the White Sox sent him to the minors to get straightened out. But when he made his Brewers debut on July 1, it was like someone had hit the refresh button. In his first plate appearance, he hit a home run off Los Angeles Dodgers right-hander Yoshinobu Yamamoto. Whatever it was, Vaughn vaulted into the spotlight with the Brewers. As McKibbin wrote, Vaughn wasn't chasing pitches like he was with the White Sox, pulling the ball more and hitting the ball hard more often. As an added bonus, Vaughn's July featured a reduction in strikeouts and an increase in walks. "The development of his swing decisions suggests that, while Vaughn is unlikely to maintain a 1.075 OPS over the remainder of the season, his improvements are here to stay in a position that the Brewers have struggled to garner offensive production from since mid-May," McKibbin wrote. McKibbin also took a look at what Vaughn's production could mean to Hoskins for the rest of the season, as well as Jake Bauers, the backup first baseman. "However you look at it, Vaughn has a fantastic opportunity over the next three weeks to demonstrate that he should be the Brewers' starting first baseman down the stretch and into the playoffs," McKibbin wrote. 3. A Complicated Move? Headline: "Trading for Eugenio Suárez is What Brewers Hired Pat Murphy For" Author: Matthew Trueblood Publish date: July 22 Summary: The trade deadline always makes for good content, and Brewers fans had to be using the meme of Leo DiCaprio pointing when they saw this article. Third baseman Eugenio Suarez, stuck with the injury-ravaged Arizona Diamondbacks at the time, was a popular trade target for a lot of teams. The Brewers, in desperate need of an influx of power, most definitely could have used Suarez's right-handed bat. That was never the question. The question, instead, was how Suarez would fit into the Brewers' lineup and what the ramifications of acquiring the third baseman would be. The Brewers were solid at the time at third base with rookie Caleb Durbin, but he would never be confused for a power hitter. "Adding Suárez would throw a roadblock in front of a key player who was the centerpiece of an offseason deal for the team's former relief ace, who has delivered huge value for them and embodies their whole philosophy and identity neatly," Trueblood wrote. And this is where Trueblood got into the crux of his article. Adding Suarez would move Durbin off third base and put the talents of manager Pat Murphy to work. "Murphy is willing to move players around defensively," Trueblood wrote. "He's willing to communicate, compassionately but bluntly, that certain players won't play every day, and to hold them to a high standard of preparation and performance, anyway. He's the perfect guy to manage the juggling act that will become necessary if this team lands Suárez." Durbin could have seen action at second base against left-handers, giving the lefty-hitting Brice Turang a break, or even moving Turang to short and spelling Joey Ortiz. Murphy never had to worry about this dilemma as Suarez was traded to the Seattle Mariners. Durbin would finish third in NL Rookie of the Year voting and Turang would turn on the power in August, so some moves are better left not being made. 2. Vaughn's Roller-Coaster Ride Headline: "Once Again, Andrew Vaughn Has Complicated First Base" Author: Jason Wang Publish date: Sept. 21 Summary: In case you were wondering, yes, Vaughn was a very popular topic with Brewers fans. That was because he was providing something the Crew really needed, and that was right-handed power. Hoskins had hit 12 homers before his thumb injury. After joining the Brewers, Vaughn hit five in July and another four in August. But August was a tricky month for Vaughn. While the power was still there, he wasn't able to sustain the pace he set in July. That coincided with Hoskins being on a rehab assignment, getting close to returning to the lineup. But the Brewers kept Hoskins in the minors as long as they could before finally activating him Sept. 9. That allowed for Vaughn to regroup and, perhaps with the knowledge the first base job was his to lose, he responded with a productive bat, even though he didn't hit another homer in the regular season. "His aforementioned slump saw him lose a lot of his pop at the plate, at least on paper," Wang wrote. "He slugged just .375 over that span (Aug. 8-31), partly due to bad luck and partly due to opposing pitchers becoming wise to his antics. Now, he has become less reliant on the long ball and is more than willing to simply put the ball in play as long as it becomes a hit of some sort. He still hasn’t hit a home run since August 15th, but has instead slashed .444/.475/.583 with five doubles so far this month." The combined production of Vaughn and Bauers would lead to Hoskins not being on the roster for either postseason series. 1. A Tough Situation Headline: "Brewers Manager Pat Murphy Needs to Stand Up to Catcher William Contreras" Author: Jake McKibben Publish date: May 8 Summary: The revelation that catcher William Contreras had a broken middle finger on his catching hand was an eyebrow-raiser. It helped explain Conteras' slow offensive start to the season, but the injury was sustained late in the 2024 season and didn't really become problematic until this early point in the season. McKibben wrote on the subject just shortly after the injury announcement, so the path the Brewers would choose was not exactly clear. The conventional route would have been putting Contreras on the injured list for a couple of weeks to allow the injury to heal. Catching with a broken finger is painful, much less when a batter might clip the glove from behind and perhaps exacerbate the injury. McKibben provided a few potential options, including a splint, which didn't seem ideal as it would affect Contreras' ability to hit, not to mention the logistics of catching. But Contreras is one of the most valuable Brewers, as you can see where he ranks on our Brewer Fanatic list, not only for the terrific defense and the way he handles the pitching staff, but — as we have mentioned a few times above — he also provides right-handed power and a strong middle-of-the-order bat. McKibben then offered a quote from Murphy about Contreras not wanting to go on the IL due to the iron-man mentality the catcher has. "It's incredibly brave of Contreras to fight through the pain he is in, but the Brewers have enough depth at catcher that they don't need him to," McKibben wrote. "They can afford for him to get back to full health without endangering himself." McKibben concluded the article by saying Murphy needed to take a stand with Contreras and spend some time mending on the IL. Contreras would end up playing the entire season with the broken finger and had an offseason procedure to address the injury. View full article