Milwaukee Brewers Offseason Guide

While the Texas sun dries up champagne spilled on the streets of Houston following the Astros’ World Series victory, the rest of Major League Baseball is stacking wood for Hot Stove season which officially got underway Sunday when eligible players became free agents and the moratorium on trading big-league players came to an end.

It will be an especially busy winter in Milwaukee, where Matt Arnold takes over as president of baseball operations after David Stearns unexpectedly stepped down from the position and into an advisory role.

Arnold has a pretty lengthy to-do list as he tries to bolster a roster that missed the playoffs by one game last season, snapping a franchise-record run of four consecutive postseason appearances.

Topping that list is working out deals with 18 arbitration-eligible players, including potential multi-year extensions for homegrown aces Corbin Burnes and Brandon Woodruff. He also has to decide on whether or not to exercise club options on second baseman Kolten Wong and right-handed reliever Brad Boxberger while also scouring the open market for potential free agent additions or trade partners.

So, as the offseason gets underway, here’s a look at where the Brewers stand in terms of their roster, payroll, injury situation and top prospects as well as a guide to key dates leading up to the start of Spring Training in February:

Roster & Payroll

Milwaukee’s payroll climbed to a franchise-record $142 million last season, according to data from Spotrac.com, but that figure ranked just 20th among the 30 MLB teams and nearly $20 million below the league average of $163 million.

Heading into the winter, the Brewers only have approximately $31 million committed to three players with FanGraphs.com projecting another $70-$80 million going toward Milwaukee’s arbitration-eligible players which should leave plenty of room for Arnold to find some outside help for an offense that lacked consistency last season.

Signed for 2023 (3, $30.9 million): OF Christian Yelich ($26 million), RHP Freddy Peralta ($3.7 million), LHP Aaron Ashby ($1.2 million).

Team option (2): 2B Kolten Wong ($10 million), RHP Brad Boxberger ($3 million)

Arbitration-eligible (18): SS Willy Adames, INF Mike Brosseau, RHP Corbin Burnes, RHP Matt Bush, C Victor Caratini, RHP Trevor Gott, RHP Jandel Gustave, INF Keston Hiura, RHP Adrian Houser, LHP Eric Lauer, LHP Hoby Milner, RHP Luis Perdomo, OF Hunter Renfroe, LHP Brent Suter, 1B Rowdy Tellez, INF Luis Urias, RHP Devin Williams, RHP Brandon Woodruff.

Pre-arbitration (3): C Alex Jackson, RHP Miguel Sanchez, OF Tyrone Taylor.

Free agents. (5): OF Andrew McCutchen, C Omar Narvaez, UTL Jace Peterson, LHP Taylor Rogers, RHP Trevor Rosenthal.

Injury Report

In his annual end-of-the-season press conference, Stearns said that the Brewers finished the season “in pretty good shape, health-wise,” with no players requiring any sort of offseason surgeries or rehab.

When the season ended, Milwaukee had seven players on its injured list. One of those was Rosenthal, who is no longer on the roster.

• RHP Jandel Gustave (right forearm)
• C Alex Jackson* (left wrist)
• RHP Luis Perdomo (right calf)
• RHP Adrian Houser (right groin)
• RHP Justin Topa (left ankle)
• RHP Matt Bush (Non-COVID illness)

Top Prospects

Before his decision to step down, Stearns said that the Brewers expected an influx of talent from their farm system to fill out the roster in 2023.

Jackson Chourio, OF: Chourio wasn’t even among Milwaukee’s Top 30 prospects a year ago but rocketed his way up the charts and is now not just the Brewers’ top prospect, but one of the top prospects in all of baseball. With just one full pro season under his belt, Choiro isn’t likely to see big-league time in 2023 — especially with so many other outfielders ahead of him in the system — but it isn’t too far-fetched to expect him to get an invite to Spring Training and could play his way into a call-up somewhere down the road.

Sal Frelick, OF: Frelick has been on an offensive tear since the Brewers selected him with the 15th overall pick in the 2021 MLB Draft. Playing at three different levels in 2022, Frelick slashed .331/.403/.480 with 28 doubles, 11 homers and an .883 OPS. Most impressive, though, was his paltry 8.8% strikeout rate in 217 plate appearances at Triple-A Nashville. That kind of plate discipline, combined with his overall offensive production and defensive athleticism, could put him in the running to be Milwaukee’s leadoff batter on Opening Day.

Joey Wiemer, OF: After earning the Brewers’ Minor League Player of the Year honors in 2021, the former University of Cincinnati standout produced an .801 OPS last season while leading the organization with 34 doubles and was third among Milwaukee’s minor leaguers with 21 home runs.

Brice Turang, SS/OF: The 23-year-old former first round pick slashed .286/.360/.412 with 13 home runs and 34 stolen bases in 603 plate appearances for Triple-A Nashville last season and has to be added to the 40-man roster this winter to protect him from the Rule 5 Draft. Though he’s played primarily at shortstop since joining the organization as a first-round pick in 2018, Turang could provide a less expensive alternative at second base if Milwaukee chooses to decline its option on Kolten Wong.

Garrett Mitchell, OF: Milwaukee’s first-round pick in 2020 got his first taste of big league action late last season and made the most of the opportunity by batting .311 with three triples, two home runs, nine RBIs and eight stolen bases while posting an impressive .832 OPS in 68 plate appearances.

Dates to Remember

Nov. 6 — Teams may resume trading Major League players and eligible players can become free agents. Teams may also begin exclusive negotiations with their own free agents.

Nov. 7-10 — MLB general managers’ meetings (Las Vegas)

Nov. 9 — Last day for teams to request waivers on draft-excluded players until spring

Nov. 15 — Last day for teams to add players to 40-man roster to protect them from Rule 5 draft

Nov. 18 — Deadline for teams to formally tender contracts to unsigned and arbitration-eligible players.

Dec. 5-7 — MLB Winter Meetings (San Diego)

Dec. 6 — MLB Draft Lottery

Dec. 7 — Rule 5 Draft

Jan. 13, 2023 — Last day for teams to exchange salary figures with arbitration-eligible players

Jan. 15 — International signing period begins

Feb. 13 — Pitchers and catchers report for Spring Training