Potential free agent and trade additions
The Brewers have a solid corps of young infielders with more promising names in the pipeline. But with Willy Adames now a free agent, will the Brewers consider other names in trade or free agency this offseason? Here are some players Milwaukee could consider.
Nicky Lopez, 2B, 0.9 fWAR (free agent)
Lopez hasn’t impressed much at the plate recently with a paltry 68 wRC+ over the past three seasons. But the Brewers might not need to target a full-time starter. He will be entering his age-30 season, so perhaps the Brewers think they could work something out of Lopez like he had in is 2021 season when he hit .300.
Lopez would be a cheap addition that fits the Brewers’ style, even if he doesn’t provide much ceiling. As a bench player, he could fill in at both second base and shortstop, depending on what the team ultimately needs. He has a low strikeout profile with good contact rates and provides solid defense. However, all these traits are fairly redundant given the rest of the roster, but he fits that style well and could be a cheap bench player.
Josh Rojas, 3B, 1.9 fWAR (free agent)
Rojas is another player with a solid defensive profile and could slot in at third base, if the team decides to move Joey Ortiz to shortstop in 2025. Rojas isn’t an elite bat, but he’s shown enough to be a regular in the majors. Since his first full season in 2021, he has a 97 wRC+, which is respectable when considering he would help maintain the defense’s elite status.
With just eight home runs and 10 stolen bases this past season, he won’t carry the team in those categories, but it’s enough to contribute to the bottom half of the order. This year, Rojas posted the highest barrel rate and hard-hit rates of his career. He hits a lot of fly balls, and for a team like the Brewers that tends to be more line-drive focused, they might be able to optimize his output if he maintains that slight increase in hard contact. While those rates were career bests, they were still well below average, so Rojas might benefit from a more line-drive focused approach.
Rojas is ranked as the second-best third baseman free agent on the market, according to MLB.com, so the team might not want to chase Rojas if his contract demands are too high.
Oswaldo Cabrera, UTIL, 0.9 fWAR (New York Yankees)
At just 25 years old, Cabrera offers a young, versatile player who could fill multiple roles on a team like the Brewers. Not only did he get the majority of his games at third base, but the Yankees also used him as their first baseman at the end of the season, where he impressed at times.
Cabrera has a tantalizing offensive profile but hasn’t yet had a breakout season. He makes good contact with a low strikeout rate, but he hasn’t yet turned that into reliable production. His 8.4% swinging strike rate would have ranked fourth best among the Brewers 12 hitters with at least 150 plate appearances, only behind Sal Frelick, Brice Turang, and Ortiz.
Cabrera had more home runs than Frelick or Turang despite playing only about two-thirds as many games. His defensive versatility is alone a worthwhile reason to add someone like Cabrera, but he might have more offensive potential than most other free agents the Brewers would add on a cheap contract. However, at just 25, he’s likely to cost a decent amount in a trade package, even if he is mostly just a role player for New York.
Ty France, 1B, -0.9 fWAR, (free agent)
There are plenty of Brewers prospects that might make an impact next year, so the Brewers might not need to make a splash on a starting-caliber player. Why not take a chance on a bounce back, then? If the Brewers want Tyler Black to spend some more time in the minors at the start of the season, a player like Ty France could alternate with Rhys Hoskins at first base.
France has been on a steady decline, dropping from a 129 wRC+ in 2021 to a 93 wRC+ mark this past season. That was the first time the first baseman had a below-average mark since he became a full-time player. His strikeout rate was also a career-high for a full season at 21.3%. But that’s still a reasonable number, so would the Brewers take a chance on the power output? As recently as 2022, France was a 20-home run hitter, and even this past season he hit 13 over the fence.
He’s a serious defensive liability, though, so the Brewers would need to be confident they could unleash a dormant offensive source here. France wasn’t a standout in any batted ball metrics, but he was hovering just below league average in most categories. If the Brewers look to add France, it would have to be with minimal commitment.
Stats courtesy of FanGraphs unless otherwise noted.