Michael Trzinski

I, for once, would like to see the player say something like: "I know that the Yankees are offering me $15mm more than the Brewers, but Milwaukee has treated me pretty well, my wife and family like living here, and the fans are great. We are going to sign with the Brewers." Don't be afraid of what your agent will say when he loses his share of the extra $15mm. Fire him and get a new one. Don't be afraid of how badly you get denigrated by the MLBPA for choosing a 'lesser' contract. How many players have gone to New York and failed miserably? Half? 75%? Stay where you are, Big Woo: the people of Milwaukee love you and want you back. Take the first step and accept the offer, have a monster year, and next offseason could be a very lucrative one for you, one way or another.

Unless they are reverse splits...I didn't look.

In the 'Just for Fun' category of your favorite baseball website, coming soon... 😎

Haha, good one!

I would be a fan of acquiring O'Hearn. I think he could be a valuable asset.

I believe there should be a much simpler salary structure, and I hope to post an article that states my ideas in the coming weeks. In my world, gone are the long-term contracts (4+ years), guaranteed contracts, and deferred money. It's gotten way too complicated...

Late bloomer, fan favorite, future big-league manager. Those all describe Stephen Vogt. Vogt (pronounced 'vote') made his major league debut at age 27 after six years in the Tampa Bay Rays minor league system. The catcher's first season was a disaster: 0-for-25 in a late-season stint. The following spring, Vogt was purchased by the Oakland Athletics. After splitting time between the minors and the bigs for Oakland, Vogt became a full-time starter behind the dish and earned All-Star status in both 2015 and 2016. Vogt was drafted in the 12th round of the 2007 MLB Amateur draft by the Tampa Bay Devil Rays. He only played 18 games for Tampa Bay before being sold to Oakland. After four and one-half seasons with the A's, he was selected off waivers by the Brewers in June 2017. He split time behind the plate with Manny Pina but was lost to a sprained MCL in his left knee in mid-July. Vogt missed a month but played well upon his return, batting .255/.271/.457 across 97 plate appearances in 33 games with seven doubles and four HRs. In the offseason before the 2018 campaign, Vogt worked on improving his game, but during spring training hurt his throwing shoulder. After a couple months of rehab, Vogt played three games in the minors as a warm-up for his return to Milwaukee. Unfortunately, he reinjured his shoulder on his last day of rehab, which resulted in season-ending surgery. Vogt traveled with the Brewers the last few months of the season, acting in a role that Vogt called 'a weird hybrid of player-coach.' The time spent in the dugout with the team was a learning experience, one that would be helpful in the future. Vogt was well-traveled his last four years in the majors, playing for San Francisco, Arizona, Atlanta, and for one final year (2022) in Oakland. After announcing his retirement on September 22, Vogt slammed a home run in his last major league at-bat on October 5 in a 3-2 victory over the Los Angeles Angels. In early 2023, Vogt was hired by the Seattle Mariners to become their bullpen and quality control coach. Prior to the 2024 season, Vogt was tabbed by the Cleveland Guardians to become their manager. Vogt led the former Indians to a pair of American League Central titles. In 2024, the Guardians made it all the way to ALCS before falling to the New York Yankees in five games. View full player

No scarecrows here. Players will NEVER (or almost never) take a lesser contract because the MLBPA will not allow it. That simple. If Woo won't sign for the Brewers offer, then he doesn't. Maybe he won't get any offers? We just don't know.

It is relevant when a player that is already a multimillionaire says he NEEDS another $150m so that his family is 'set for life.' And if he is not 'set,' there is no harm in finding a job at age 40 or whatever. I have friends that played in the bigs in the 70s, 80s, and 90s, and many of them worked late in life.

If you believe B-R's salary chart for the Woo, he has made $29.5m in his career. Assuming that he still has half of that, he should already be set for life. That aside, I would offer 3yrs-$40m. No deferments, and maybe some type of buyout option each year, if that is possible? He at times has been a great pitcher, and the majority of the time, he has been above-average. The one thing he struggles with now is his health, and the contract noted above reflects that. I would like to see him continue in Milwaukee, but only if 'the price is right.'

Image courtesy of Charles LeClaire-USA TODAY Sports Returning this offseason is a series called 'Inside the Milwaukee Brewers Players Project.' Each week, we plan to roll out a piece featuring three new bios in the Milwaukee Brewers Players Project, with a summary for each player and links to the complete bios, including stats, baseball cards, and short bios. This week, we feature the 'Three Jonathans.' Infielders Jonathan Villar and Jonathan Schoop, along with catcher Jonathan Lucroy, now grace the Milwaukee Brewers Players Project. Enjoy! Jonathan Lucroy (2010-16) 'Luc' was a fan favorite, with his nickname being screamed by the faithful at Miller Park during his seven-year tenure in Milwaukee. The likable catcher was arguably one of the best catchers in Brewers history. He is tied for 10th best with a .284 career batting average, and his 53 doubles in 2014 are tied for the Brewers' lead in a single season with Lyle Overbay. Jonathan Villar (2016-18) Villar (pronounced Vee-YAR) played a speed game, and his 62 stolen bases in 2016 led the major leagues and rank second behind Scott Podsednik's 70 steals in 2004. Jonathan Schoop After coming to Milwaukee in a trade from Baltimore that included Villar, Schoop played only 46 games for Milwaukee and was a major disappointment. The Brewers were hoping to get the player that smacked 57 home runs the two prior seasons, but instead got a player who batted .202/.246/.331 in just 124 at-bats for the Brew Crew. Brewer Fanatic is proud to announce the release of the Milwaukee Brewers Players Project! This project is an endeavor to collect as much information about past and present Brewers as possible, giving fans a repository of high-quality data about their favorite players. This is a public, community-driven project… that means everyone is encouraged to participate! Want to write a bio? Here's how: https://brewerfanatic.com/help/all-help/how-to-use-the-milwaukee-brewers-players-project-r12/ View full article

Based on numbers... In 21 years, he played 2683 games, which is 127 games/season. Let's just say he had averaged 140 games (to account for two strike seasons and end-of-career lack of playing time), which would be an additional 257 games. At the rate of 1.23 hits/game, that would increase his career hit total to 3635. If we bumped the average to 150 games/season, he would have played 3150 games and at 1.23 H/game, the hit number would be 3874. If the average is 160 games/season, that would be 3360 games and 4132 hits, which would put him third behind Rose and Cobb. What we can't really track is that if he had been healthy, would he have knocked more than 1.23 hits/game? Maybe one of the analyst experts on BF could figure that out, but I can't. It would be safe to say he would have probably been in the top five. My question: how is it he only made seven All-Star teams????

Jonathan Lucroy was one of the most prolific catchers in Milwaukee Brewers history. According to an article in the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel in 2021, Lucroy led all Brewers catchers in the following all-time categories: 752 hits, .288 batting average, 143 doubles, 77 HRs, 358 RBI, and 326 runs scored. His 725 games behind the plate ranked second all-time. Lucroy was drafted in the third round of the 2007 MLB Amateur Draft from the University of Louisiana at Lafayette by the Brewers. He reached Milwaukee in his fourth professional season and made his MLB debut in late May 2010 and was 11-for-32 (.344) in his first eight games. All his hits were singles but the power would come. His first season showed a batting line of .253/.300/.329 in 75 games. He would be a mainstay behind the plate for Milwaukee for the next six seasons. After a solid 2011, Lucroy was having his best season in 2012 and was hitting .345/.387/.583 in late May when he wife accidentally dropped a suitcase on Lucroy's right hand, causing a 'boxer's fracture,' and forcing Lucroy to miss 50 games. He still had a solid season, hitting a career-best .320 with an OPS+ of 132. 'Luc' averaged 150 games the next two campaigns and earned his first of two All-Star nods in 2014 when he had career best with a bWAR of 6.4 and 53 two-base hits, which led the major leagues. He finished fourth in NL MVP voting and batted .301/.373/.465 across 655 plate appearances. Lucroy was named to the NL All-Star team in 2016 and shortly after was traded in the Texas Rangers, along with Jeremy Jeffress for three prospects, including Lewis Brinson. In his 30s. Lucroy bounced around the majors, mostly as a backup for Colorado, Oakland, Los Angeles Angels, Chicago Cubs, Boston, Washington, and Atlanta. Lucroy retired from professional baseball on August 2, 2022. Four days later, he was formally inducted into the Brewers Wall of Honor. View full player

When Milwaukee Brewers GM David Stearns traded Jonathan Villar, number seven prospect Luis Ortiz, and another player to the Baltimore Orioles for Jonathan Schoop in 2018, many fans wondered why. The Brewers had Travis Shaw, who had moved from third base to second base in favor of recently acquired Mike Moustakas, along with the newcomer Schoop. That meant someone would be the odd man out, and seemed to be a strange trade when it was obvious that the Brewers needed a starting pitcher more than they did infield depth. As it turned out, the pitching was good enough as the Brewers made it all the way to the National League Championship Series before falling to the Los Angeles Dodgers in seven games. Schoop on the other hand, lasted only until the end of the season and was granted free agency. Schoop (pronounced 'Scope') was signed as an international free agent in 2008 by the Baltimore Orioles. He was another in a line a major stars to come from Willemstad, Curaçao and was preceded by closer Kenley Jansen and Hall of Fame outfielder Andruw Jones. The right-handed batting second baseman made his way up the Orioles minor league system and made his big league debut on September 25, 2013 and went 2-for-3 with a home run in his first game. In 2014, Schoop became the O's starting second baseman. In 2015 he suffered a knee injury and missed nearly three months. The next two years combined, he only missed two games total as he slammed 57 homers in those seasons, earning All-Star status in 2017. After a half-season in Baltimore in 2018, Schoop was traded to the Brewers. The trade was a bad one for Milwaukee, as Schoop played in only 46 games and batted .202/.246/.331 with only four HRs. He was granted free agency after the season. The Minnesota Twins signed Schoop as a free agent in December 2018 but he only played one year for the Twinkies, batting .256/.304/.473 with 23 HRs in 433 at-bats. He moved to Detroit as a free agent during the Covid season of 2020 and then had one of his better years in 2021, batting .278/.320/.435 with 22 homers, 30 doubles, and 84 RBI. Schoop had his worst season in 2022 with a .561 POS and an OPS+ of 60. After similar production in the first half of 2023, he was designated for assignment and released by Detroit in mid-July. The last two seasons, Schoop has played for the Algodoneros de Union Laguna team in the Mexican League along with 'fellow Jonathan' Villar. View full player

@Tim Muma, as a fellow baseball historian, I say 'well done!'

I know the MLBPA would NEVER agree to this, but there should be a limit on a contract, like three or four years max. And no contract should be guaranteed. If you are injured, you get a minimum (let's say $5m) plus extra for whatever incentives you might reach. So when Joe Ballplayer gets injured in the second game of the season and is out for the year, he gets $5m, not the $30m that his contract calls for. Baseball needs some sanity, and neither the owners nor the players will give that right now. At some point, because of the greed from all sides, baseball will die. How long can the 'Average Joe' fan afford to pay for $150 tickets, $100 parking, and $20 beers? It's not here yet, but will be soon.

I agree, but maybe if the offense could have scored an extra run or two, it *could* have made a difference.

I think that bottom line, Milwaukee just ran into a buzzsaw starting foursome. And BTW, I would argue that Rick Wise's performance on June 23, 1971 was even better than Ohtani's. It was not the postseason but Wise threw a no-hitter for the Phillies against the Reds. He was one free pass away from a perfect game, and while he was at it, he hit two HRs with three RBI. Not a bad game!

Arguably, the Brewers thought the Burnes trade was a fat deal. I think there is still potential for that to be the case, but after two years, I wouldn't say so.

Jonathan Villar holds a special place in Milwaukee Brewers lore as one of only two Brewers to lead the major leagues in stolen bases. In 2004, Scott Podsednik stole 70 bases to pace both leagues and 12 years later, Villar pilfered 62 bags to lead the major leagues in 2016. Despite playing in only 365 games as a Brewer, Villar ranks 15th on the career steals list for Milwaukee with 99 stolen bases. Jonathan Rafael Villar was signed as an international free agent out of the Dominican Republic in 2008 by the Philadelphia Phillies. The switch-hitting infielder stole 82 bases over three seasons at the lower levels of the minors for the Phillies when he was traded with two other players to the Houston Astros for pitcher Roy Oswalt. Villar moved his way steadily through the Astros chain and made his big league debut with Houston in 2013, collecting four hits in eight ABs in his first two games. In his first three years he split time between Triple-A and Houston before being traded to Milwaukee for pitcher Cy Sneed after the 2015 campaign. Villar made an immediate impact with the Brewers in 2016, setting career highs with 38 doubles, 62 steals, 79 walks, an .826 OPS, and a 117 OPS+. Villar began the season at shortstop but moved to third base when top prospect Orlando Arcia was called up. The following season, Villar moved again, this time to second base when the Brewers acquired 3B Travis Shaw. In early June, Villar was only hitting .213/.283/.342 when he injured his back while diving for a grounder. He came back a couple weeks later and played mostly at second, but also played six games in center field. He finished the season with a batting line of . 241/.293/.372. Villar played at second base in 2018 before being traded with two others to the Baltimore Orioles for infielder Jonathan Schoop just before the July trade deadline. Villar bounced around the majors the final five years of his career, playing for Baltimore, Miami, Toronto, New York Mets, Chicago Cubs, and the Los Angeles Angels. From 2023-2025, Villar played in the Mexican League. View full player