Matt Breen

This. The Brewers will be all about bringing Burnes back - and to a degree that's legit. But in reality, they will move him if the offer is right. It's all about waiting for someone to blink and overpay. If it doesn't happen - so be it. We can wait until the trade deadline or even just take the pick. The latter is not ideal, but at least you get something. And it likely means we're doing well enough to contend.

I love it. Keep him in the AL, and make all those other teams desperate for our players - now and in the future.

Cronenworth is due around $80m over the next 7 years. A lot for a guy who did not look good last year. Was it an aberration? I don't know. The club would have to be pretty sure they can fix him.

Eduardo Rodriguez to the Dbacks. 4-years/$80m. https://www.mlbtraderumors.com/2023/12/diamondbacks-agree-to-four-year-deal-with-eduardo-rodriguez.html I like this for Milwaukee - if they want to deal Burnes. The more higher end arms that get picked up by clubs such as Arizona, the more value Burnes should have as a trade target.

The guy did well for him - $12m. Nice coin. I didn't expect him to get that much - but good for Caratini.

With the price people are having to pay free agents (and willing to pay), I think Burnes will be in heavy demand once the smoke clears - especially after Ohtani, Yamamoto and Montgomery sign. The key is will anyone meet our equally heavy demands. If so, then Burnes will be gone. The beauty of things is that if no one meets our price, we can just take our football and go home. Burnes will be just fine in our 2024 rotation.

Nice to see the statement from Arnold regarding Yelich at 1B. I would have been fine with it, but let's just move on from it if it's not in the cards. I hope Yelich spends most of his time at DH. An outfield of Chourio, Mitchell, Frelick, Wiemer and Taylor is great defensively.

Totally get wanting pitching. Key is finding it. I think it's easier to find a player blocked at a position - such as 3B (Coby Mayo for instance) than high end arms. It's not like you have one starter. If we can find the arms, great. Go for it. But teams really seem reluctant to trade high end young pitching - which I understand. It's hard to find.

Two steps here. Step 1: Burnes and Williams to Orioles. SS Joey Ortiz and 3B Coby Mayo and a lottery ticket or two) to Brewers Ortiz and Turang are our new SS/2B combo. Mayo goes to 3B. Reports are somewhat mixed on his ability at 3B. He's got a huge arm, and might best fit in the OF, but we don't need him there. If he can't handle 3B, he moves to 1B and/or DH. He's a big, power hitting right-hander that we could really use. Step 2: Adames to someone else for a starting pitcher. This probably isn't as easy as I make it sound - but find someone to get a young starter who is ready - or nearly ready - for the majors. Example would be Ryan Pepiot of the Dodgers. The goal would be to have a young arm to replace Burnes. No, he won't replace Burnes' production, but at least be serviceable. In the end, you add six years of a couple of good looking position players - including a power bat in Mayo that the team lacks.

Agree. The team would do this deal in a heartbeat if it was offered. Holliday is too good of a talent to let go. Baltimore won't do it. They have other pieces they can deal.

Joey Ortiz would be a nice addition, especially if Willie gets traded.

It's going to be fun. I just hope fans and the organization is patient with him. There's bound to be some adjustment time in there.

Biles would crush her. That woman is powerful.

Williams and Burnes for pitcher DL Hall, 3B Coby Mayo, and 2B Connor Norby. Hall moves into the rotation. Mayo goes to 3B (or 1B if the team doesn't like him at 3B), Norby gets a shot at 2B. Ideally we get more than one pitcher, but this is what I came up with. I like IF Joey Ortiz as well, but that's getting too pricey for Baltimore.

Sounds like it's done. Just a matter of team announcing it. https://twitter.com/ByAndrewWagner/status/1731149491015716986?s=20

Regarding Yelich at 1B, that would be great - if it works for everyone. I doubt Yelich couldn't play 1B - he did play the position in high school and is a pretty athletic guy. However, as CheezWizHead noted above, is 1B worse for Yelich's health. He has had back issues in the past, and 1B involves a lot bending over and crouching. Honestly, I think the only person who can answer that is Yelich. He might say it's awful on him - or it's not a big deal. Or it would help him due to having to run less (or whatever would be the reason). Every back issue isn't the same. Just as any knee issue or shoulder issue isn't the same. 10 players with back issues could list 10 different things that are most likely to trigger a recurrence of those problems. In the end, the team should talk to Yelich about his thoughts on playing 1B. If he's amendable and it doesn't cause problems with his health - then go for it. If not, the best position is DH and some occasional starts in LF.

That would be nice to have Miley back. Would really buff up the rotation. Burnes, Peralta, Miley, Houser, Rea, Gasser. That’s a solid six. I’m hoping Carlos Rodriguez continues to develop. Perhaps he’ll be ready late in the season in case injuries or whatever hits the club.

I have no clue if this is a good idea or not. I don't know enough about assessing young players really know what's best. But I'll just say that I'd rather have 8 years of Jackson at $80m than a mid-30's pitcher - such as Sonny Gray - for the same amount. Huge risk, but huge reward. People are pointing to the Braves locking up of players. The key is identifying the right players to lock up. Let's hope we can do as good as they have done.

We've talked about the pros of rebooting the Brewers in 2024. What if they took the opposite approach? Image courtesy of © Benny Sieu-USA TODAY Sports Last week, we considered rebooting the Brewers' major league roster by moving short-term assets, including Corbin Burnes, Willy Adames, Devin Williams, and Freddy Peralta. The idea was to inject the roster with some high-end talent. Such a move would likely have caused the Brewers to punt the 2024 season but would have left the team poised for bigger things in 2025 and beyond. However, such a move discounts the fact that the Brewers won the division in 2023, and it’s not out of the realm of possibility that they could make another run in 2024, even after losing Brandon Woodruff and Wade Miley. How Can They Run It Back? The first thing looming over the upcoming season is the status of über prospect Jackson Chourio. Recent rumblings indicate the team will lock up Chourio to a long-term contract. Such a deal would mean the club has little reason - short of an atrocious spring camp - to keep Chourio in the minor leagues. With that in mind, let’s assume Chourio breaks camp with the Brewers. This means Milwaukee has a crowded outfield, including Yelich, Frelick, Mitchell, Chourio, Taylor, and Wiemer. A solution to this is to shift the worst fielder of the group (Yelich) to another position. This would be first base. Again, I’m making a leap that this is feasible, or something he’d accept. Yelich played first in high school, is athletic, and would benefit health-wise from playing a less stressful position. With Yelich at first, the outfield would thus consist of Chourio, Frelick, Mitchell, Wiemer, and Taylor. As for DH, one of the five outfielders (or Contreras) could regularly slot into the position. Around the infield, William Contreras is set at catcher, and the club could either re-sign Victor Caratini or try someone such as youngster Payton Henry (who is a free agent) or another low-cost glove-first type veteran. Top prospect Jeferson Quero probably needs at least a half season at AAA but could get called up if needed. Let’s go around the horn. Yelich is at first, Brice Turang is at second, and Adames is at shortstop, leaving third base open. This would go to rookie Tyler Black. This assumes that the club feels Tyler Black could handle the position (yes, we are making many assumptions in this article - but that’s okay). As for reserves, there’s Andruw Monasterio and Owen Miller, but the club might want to find a low-cost right-handed bat that can play first and third base. An example would be Evan Longoria or Nick Senzel. The Pitching Staff The rotation would begin with Burnes, Peralta, Houser, and Rea. The fifth spot would be Robert Gasser. After a full season at Triple A in 2023, he should be ready for the majors. Depth is problematic. Carlos Rodriguez probably needs at least half a season at Triple A, so a veteran arm should be added. An example is Alex Wood (who could be had for a low price - even a minor-league deal). Another interesting arm is Erick Fedde, who had a monster campaign in Korea in 2023. Fedde disappointed in the majors, but last year, he found success overseas (20 wins and a 2.00 ERA in 180 IP). He should receive at least $5-6 million in a new contract. Considering his lack of success in the majors, this would be a considerable risk, but it might have some big upside (or complete failure - see the Josh Lindblom deal). As for relievers, Williams, Uribe, Milner, Peguero, Payamps, Wilson, and Megill make a formidable pen - and there are plenty of arms to fill the final spot and provide depth. Free Agent Additions That would, for the most part, set the team for 2024. However, I have not spent much on free agency. The roster as it sits is at around $100 million in payroll. Adding some depth bats and a minor league deal pitcher shouldn’t take up too much cash, maybe $5 million total. Assuming the team has a budget of $120 million, we could consider some of the following ideas: Add a quality bat as DH. Justin Turner, Rhys Hoskins, or JD Martinez would be obvious fits - right-handed bats might be available on a one-year deal in the $12-15 million range. If the market goes beyond this (in years or money) pass on the idea. Each player carries a risk (age, recovering from injury) but could be a valuable asset on a one-year deal. Add a more established pitcher to the rotation. We have options: an innings-eating type arm, a guy coming off injury, or an older player (examples include Mike Clevinger, Jack Flaherty, and old friend Wade Miley). The idea would be to get some more upside. As with the DH, these deals would be limited to one year in the $10-12 million area. The club could also hang on to its cash surplus, allowing it to add players as the season went on. The 2024 Brewers would be an interesting group if we go this route. The team would take big risks with rookies (Chourio, Black, Gasser) and rely on other young players to improve (Turang, Wiemer, Frelick, Mitchell). But that’s the sort of thing the Brewers need to do every season due to their limited budgets. Also, the club could deal any players in the final year of their contracts (Burnes, Adamas, Houser) at the deadline if things don’t go well. They won’t get as much as they would if they traded them now - but at least we wouldn’t be throwing in the towel in 2024 before the season began. As for 2025 and beyond, the Brewers could use next season to see if Turang can hit enough to replace Adames, and monitor how their young outfielders develop. Replacing Burnes would be the most challenging aspect but the club would have the financial flexibility to add a starter - maybe not of Burnes’s quality - but at least a decent player. And there’s the hope that a younger player like Rodriguez could develop into a quality MLB starter. No matter what way forward the team selects, it will be an interesting 2024 for the Brewers. View full article

I really dislike articles that talk about trade partners without actually seeing if the teams have the assets to match up. Sure, I can say that (insert player name) would fit well on (insert team name). But that's sort of lazy. Actually tell us how such a deal could be put together.

And likely closer to the majors - if that matters. Guys with experience at AA and AAA are a little more of a 'known' quality at that point - having faced upper level pitching and bats.

I really look at them as just treading water. Or maybe a little better - but not by a ton. They get Gray, Kyle Gibson and Lance Lynn. Gone are Montgomery, Flaherty, Dakota Hudson, and Wainwright. Plus, Jordan Hicks. As you say, getting rid of Wainwright will help them a lot. And Gray is probably better than Montgomery - but at 34 he's three years older. Gibson is an innings eater. I guess Lynn could rebound - but who knows - especially at 36 (same age as Gibson). I will say that it at least gets them guys to reliably take the ball every five days. They didn't have that last year. And perhaps some stability will help the team overall. Also, I think the Cardinals have a lot of young arms - so a lot of this is to bridge that gap to those guys. I doubt 2024 is the year it happens - but they're probably playing a longer game.

Dodgers are resigning OF Jason Hayward to a 1-year deal. I don't really care about this, but it made me think about the man's career. I remember his rookie year - and was blown away. The guy looked like he was going to be a superstar. He was just 20 years old, and hit .277 with a .393 OBP, and 18 HRs. He had a cannon for an arm and played fabulous defense. He made the all-star game as a rookie and had a bWAR of 6.4. I figured he'd only get better. But his rookie year was the pinnacle of Heyward's career. He had some really good seasons - solid offense and outstanding defense making him a very valuable player (he averaged around 5.0 WAR his first six years). But he never really topped that first campaign (OPS, OPS+, walks - all career bests). And then his deal with the Cubs just saw him fall off a cliff at the age of 26. I think the red flag from the start was his weakness against left handers. That first year it wasn't bad - but it got worse. For his career his OPS vs lefties is .644 vs .787 vs right handers. Still, the guy has 40+ WAR for his career - so pretty impressive.

I've always liked Gray, but that being said, the Cardinals just don't look that good. Bullpen was junk last year, and the rotation is pretty 'meh' - which isn't a great combination. Some guys are getting older, and the defense is not that good. I guess they could have a bunch of rebound players and the bullpen (which is always volatile) steps up. They'll need a lot to go right next year to make the playoffs.