Milwaukee has not been especially active, but we can make some projections
As we approach the holidays, it’s worth taking a glance at the Milwaukee Brewers’ roster to where they still have holes and how those vacancies might be filled. There’s still plenty of time left in the offseason and the Brewers are notoriously patient when it comes to free agents, so there will certainly be changes between now and spring training, but we can at least look at where those changes are likely to come.
First, let’s do a quick recap of the Brewers’ activity so far this offseason. Here’s a quick list of major leaguers from last season who became free agents this offseason in one form or another and what their status is:
- Willy Adames (signed with San Francisco, 7 years/$182 million)
- Wade Miley (unsigned)
- Joe Ross (unsigned)
- Colin Rea (unsigned)
- Gary Sánchez (signed with Baltimore Orioles, 1 year/$8.5 million)
- Frankie Montas (signed with New York Mets, 2 years/$34 million)
- Hoby Milner (signed one-year deal with Texas Rangers)
- Bryse Wilson (signed with Chicago White Sox, 1 year/$1.05 million)
- Jake Bauers (unsigned)
Additionally, Rob Zastryzny and Kevin Herget were claimed off waivers by the Cubs and Mets, respectively.
The team’s other big loss, of course, is closer Devin Williams, who was traded last week to the New York Yankees for starter Nestor Cortes Jr. and infielder Caleb Durbin (who was recently slotted in at No. 15 on MLB Pipeline’s list of the Brewers’ top 30 prospects).
As for additions beyond Cortes and Durbin, the Brewers haven’t done a whole lot. The Brewers have made one major league free agent signing; lefty Grant Wolfram, who was signed on an MLB deal but who has never actually pitched above Triple-A (where he was good for the Rangers’ affiliate last season). Instead, their activity has been restricted to minor league deals with spring training invites, which have gone to catchers David García, and Ramón Rodríguez, outfielder Jared Oliva, pitcher Jon Duplantier (who was then released a month later so he could pursue an opportunity in Korea), and pitchers Deivi García and Bruce Zimmermann. Milwaukee also picked up lefty Connor Thomas from the Cardinals via the Rule 5 draft, and they added right-handers Chad Patrick and Logan Henderson to the 40-man roster.
The Current Roster
The Brewers’ current 40-man roster is full, though that includes Robert Gasser, who will certainly start the season on the 60-day IL. (The roster being full certainly does not preclude the Brewers from further activity; I don’t mean to be callous, but several players currently on the 40-man are likely viewed as expendable.) Based on how the offseason has gone so far, here’s an early 26-man roster projection, with notes where question marks remain.
Position players
Catchers (2): William Contreras, Eric Haase
Infield (5): Rhys Hoskins, Brice Turang, Joey Ortiz, Andruw Monasterio, Caleb Durbin
Outfield (5): Jackson Chourio, Christian Yelich, Garrett Mitchell, Sal Frelick, Blake Perkins
The back end of the infield is where the questions are. Monasterio is fine as a utility infielder, but he really struggled offensively last season and is not the type of player the Brewers would like to get a whole bunch of starts out of. Durbin, having never played in the majors, is a major question mark, and it remains to be seen how his defense holds up. As has been the case all offseason, this spot—a fourth starting infielder—remains the most likely place for the Brewers to add.
Tyler Black is probably the favorite for the 13th position player spot, but Oliver Dunn will be in the mix (and could conceivably even take Durbin’s spot). Honestly, I’d love to see Black have a great spring and force his way into the picture; I’m a big fan of the patient approach he showcased as a minor leaguer, but it hasn’t happened for him in limited major league opportunities yet. Black also doesn’t seem to have a position; for those hoping to see him as the answer at third base this season, it looks unlikely, as Nashville overwhelmingly used Black as a first baseman in 2024, and he played only nine games at third. Whispers seem to think his best position is in the outfield corners.
There’s also still talk of Sal Frelick at third base, but while Pat Murphy seemed to continue to be open to the idea in recent comments, he did also say—correctly, I might add—that it doesn’t make a ton of sense to move a Gold Glove-winning outfielder to the infield, and Frelick’s bat is not exactly as useful to the offense as Mookie Betts’ is in Los Angeles.
Pitchers
Starters (5): Aaron Civale, Nestor Cortes, Tobias Myers, Freddy Peralta, Brandon Woodruff
Swingmen (2): Aaron Ashby, DL Hall
Relievers (6): Trevor Megill (closer), Jared Koenig, Nick Mears, Joel Payamps, Connor Thomas, Grant Wolfram
The relievers are far from certain. Thomas, as a Rule 5 pick, needs to be on the roster or returned to St. Louis. Wolfram was signed to a major league deal, so I expect him to be in the mix. This projection leaves out J.B. Bukauskas, Bryan Hudson, Elvis Peguero, and Abner Uribe. People will get hurt. The Brewers will probably throw out a couple more fliers in the form of additions late in free agency. Craig Yoho could be involved—as a pure reliever, I’d expect him to be more likely to open the season with the Brewers than Jacob Misiorowski, who I expect will be throwing starter innings in spring training.
Where might help be coming?
As was mentioned, the obvious answer is an infielder. Durbin could be that answer, but I’m skeptical—I think it’s more likely that he essentially takes Monasterio’s spot as the team’s utility guy. Milwaukee has the flexibility to add just about any non-first-base infielder, as either of Ortiz or Turang could move to short (it seems like the preference is to keep Turang at second base, but I’m sure they wouldn’t hesitate to move him to shortstop if the right situation presented itself). If the Brewers go the free agent route, here are some still-available free agents who could fit, starting with the unlikely ones:
With the exception of Alex Bregman (who the Brewers will not sign), Ha-Seong Kim is the best infielder available but is almost definitely out of the Brewers’ price range. Gleyber Torres has sketchy defensive metrics and will probably get more money than he is worth, and those are waters that the Brewers don’t usually swim in. An outside-the-box solution could be Jurickson Profar, but his days as an infielder are long behind him (he was last a full-time infielder in 2018, and he was bad), and he’ll probably get a pretty big bump in salary after a surprising season in which he won a Silver Slugger.
A few that seem more likely: Josh Rojas played good defense for Seattle last season and won’t hit much, but he’s not a complete zero offensively and is only a couple years removed from a three-WAR season in Arizona. Jose Iglesias, after a year out of the majors, had a wildly effective season last year at age 34, but I would be extremely dubious of his offensive numbers (he had a sky-high BABIP); if the Brewers (and his agent) aren’t expecting him to hit like he did last year, he could be an option. Paul DeJong could be a fit, but it’s hard to know what you’ll get from him; he’ll only be 31 in 2025, but he’s been—at best—inconsistent as a major leaguer. Likewise, Nicky Lopez is only entering his age-30 season, but he was pretty terrible for the White Sox in 2024 and hasn’t been anywhere close to a league-average hitter since 2021. Some other potential bounce-back candidates include Yoan Moncada, Jorge Polanco, and Brendan Rodgers; other options, like Whit Merrifield, probably are not suited to a role that asks more than “backup infielder” at this point in their careers.
If none of those players are the answer, the Brewers could look to the trade market. I’m not really going to speculate on who might be available via trade, but rumors have swirled around players as high-profile as Alec Bohm and Brandon Lowe. I think this kind of splash is unlikely for this Brewers team, but with the minor league system in pretty good shape, you never know.
Expectations
I think the Brewers are going to be very conservative this offseason. Their TV deal is in flux and is likely bringing in less money—maybe significantly so—than last year. They’re paying a ton to Rhys Hoskins, which likely limits their flexibility further. I think they’ll get one of the above infielders (my gut tells me DeJong, but I’d prefer Rojas) and probably one or two relievers on small deals. But I do think the bullpen is capable of replacing Williams from within, and after the trade for Cortes, the rotation appears to be in decent shape (with the qualification that we have no idea what to expect from Woodruff this season). A splashy trade for an infielder isn’t out of the question, but I do not expect the Brewers to add much salary, so I see it as unlikely.