OPINION: Brewers Face Uncertain Market With Holes to Fill
As baseball fans make their free agent wish lists and check them twice this winter, it may be a true test of how good Brewers fans have been as to whether they get what they want this year.
The outfield heading into next year consists of Christian Yelich, Lorenzo Cain and Avisail Garcia. Middle infield will be manned by some combination of Keston Hiura, Orlando Arcia and Luis Urias. Catcher is not likely to see additions to the battery of Manny Pina and Omar Narvaez. The biggest question marks are in pitching depth and corner infield. The backend of the pen is solid for now with two NL Reliever of the Year winners in Josh Hader and Devin Williams, depending on a potential offseason trade of the former. The rotation is anchored by two young studs in Brandon Woodruff and Corbin Burnes, but faces a bevy of uncertainty after that. The corners are empty at the moment, as the primary occupants are up for new contracts and may not return. Brewers president of baseball operations David Stearns acknowledged as much in a recent interview with The Athletic.
“I think what is clear is our production at first base and third base has to improve. That, we know. Whether that can come from internal sources or external sources are some of the questions we’re continuing to talk through, evaluate and then determine the best course of action,” Stearns said, alluding to trade or free agency as potential avenues to improve.
At first, Daniel Vogelbach finished the season as the primary option, endearing himself to Milwaukee fans quickly as the big lefty bat they had grown accustomed to seeing succeed at that position. If not Vogelbach, a reunion with Eric Thames may make sense as a relatively cheap option. Though he projects as more of a designated hitter than player in the field these days, a reunion with Ryan Braun to finish his career may also make sense. The Brewers declined an exorbitant final contract year with Braun in an unsurprising move, but bringing him back for a cheaper price would be a potentially savvy acquisition.
At third, Milwaukee got a decent year out of Jedd Gyorko manning both corners for a premium at $1 million. In a thin third base market, he may be the best option to bring back as an experienced veteran presence. Another name that would be interesting as an infield option is Tommy La Stella, a lefty bat who is excellent at putting bat on ball, an area Milwaukee struggled with tremendously last season.
In the rotation, expect the Brewers to be in on not the big fish but the second or third tier of starters. As much as it is fun to imagine Trevor Bauer joining Milwaukee as the ace of the rotation on a three-year deal worth $20 million annually, the Brewers’ market for an individual starter is probably closer to five or six million a year. That prices them out of many top players, but if the organizational philosophy of recent years has shown anything, it is that Milwaukee does not spend significant assets on starting pitching.
The price may be right however for Corey Kluber, Jake Arrieta or Brett Anderson at around six million. Jeff Samardzija, Jon Lester and Cole Hamels are each projecting for a market value on the lower side of five million according to Spotrac.com as they near the end of their careers. Julio Teheran at 30-years-old is coming off a horrendous year with the Los Angeles Angels, but that just might keep him under the radar enough for a short-term cheap deal with the Brewers.
Like many organizations and families around the country, this may not be a big-spending Christmas for Milwaukee. There are still deals to be had however, and moves to remain competitive in a wide-open NL Central should definitely be expected.
