With bulk of playoff team returning, Brewers can be patient in evaluating player moves
Some elite players have been moved in the early stages of baseball’s hot stove season, but the Milwaukee Brewers aren’t expected to make a similar big splash this winter, which actually might be a good thing.
For one thing, they don’t see the need to make a headline-grabbing move after coming within one victory of the World Series in 2018. For another, the budget probably won’t allow it.
In other words, it could be a quiet week for the Brewers at baseball’s annual winter meetings, which begin Monday at the Mandalay Bay Resort & Casino in Las Vegas.
“We’re still active in a number of conversations but, probably, the nature of those conversations has changed a little bit,” general manager David Stearns said. “We do feel we have a more complete team this off-season than we’ve had in the past. So, to some extent, that changes the nature of some of the conversations we have.
“But we’re still looking for ways to make the organization better, whether it’s at the major-league or minor-league level. We’re trying to be open to any ideas that come our way. But it is different. There has been a progression over the four off-seasons I’ve been here. The first one was very active. We thought we had a real opportunity to add to the depth of the organization. We made a number of 40-man moves that off-season.
“The next off-season, we dipped a little into free agency. Last off-season, we made some substantial moves to solidify what we believed was a very competitive team. The nice thing about where we are now is we have a vast majority of the team returning that advanced to Game 7 of the NLCS. A number of those players are entering the sweet spots of their careers. We look forward to watching those players progress.”
As Stearns noted, his first winter was a whirlwind of player moves as he turned over half of his 40-man roster. The moves kept coming until he applied the final brush strokes to his rebuilding masterpiece last Jan. 25 with the nearly simultaneous additions of outfielders Lorenzo Cain and Christian Yelich, who became National League MVP.
At present, there isn’t as much flexibility in the budget after the Brewers bumped their payroll from $60 million to about $90 million last winter. Taking into account salaries already committed for 2019, totaling just over $70 million, and looming arbitration settlements with seven players, the payroll already is headed beyond $100 million.
The largest opening day payroll in franchise history was $104 million in 2015. That should be exceeded next season but not by a crazy amount, so adding big salaries would be difficult without purging others.
“We do have a core of players, many of whom have salaries that are going to escalate through the arbitration system,” Stearns said without offering a speculative payroll. “That’s going to continue to bump our payroll north.
“I also know we have an ownership group, and (principal owner) Mark (Attanasio) in particular, that is very supportive of our baseball initiatives that we deem appropriate. We’ll see how the off-season unfolds and what opportunities present themselves.”
The Brewers do have areas of depth from which they can trade, primarily the outfield and first base. Outfielders Keon Broxton and Domingo Santana had minimum salaries last season but are now out of minor-league options, and it’s unlikely both will remain. Eric Thames, signed for 2019 at $6 million with a club option for $7.5 million for 2020, lost the first base job last season to Jesús Aguilar, another minimum-salary player, and could be had in the right deal.
The Brewers also have decent starting pitching depth, especially with the advent of young right-handers Corbin Burnes, Freddy Peralta and Brandon Woodruff. But Stearns realizes the importance of having enough arms and likely wouldn’t move one without acquiring another.
“We do like the pitchers we have, and the fact that a number of them are under control for multiple years,” said Stearns, who reportedly has shown interest in available Yankees right-hander Sonny Gray. “It has the potential to be a fairly stable pitching unit, and that’s how we want to treat it.
“Of course, we’re always looking to get better. There are players out there, whether they are pitchers or position players, who potentially are elite-level contributors. We’re certainly going to see what the cost would be potentially to bring them in. There’s always a judgment as to whether that cost is worthwhile.”
The Brewers likely will do some shopping at second base after opting to non-tender disappointing Jonathan Schoop, who quickly landed in Minnesota. There are many veterans on the free-agent market, including Brian Dozier, DJ LeMahieu, Ian Kinsler, Jed Lowrie and Daniel Murphy, but Stearns would not be looking for a long-term commitment with No. 1 prospect Keston Hiura on the near horizon.
The infield depth chart currently has Aguilar at first base, Hernán Pérez at second, Orlando Arcia at shortstop and Travis Shaw at third base. But Shaw showed he could handle second base, at least on a part-time basis, after veteran third baseman Mike Moustakas was acquired in late July (he now is a free agent), so Stearns has some flexibility there.
“We have a nice grouping at the middle-infield positions, assuming Travis goes back to third,” Stearns said. “(Second base is) also an area we’ll explore externally. At this point, I don’t know that we need to make a definitive determination.
“Travis is flexible enough that he understands that. The default scenario is having Travis back at third base. But his ability to go to second does provide some options for us if we think that’s the best way to go with the team for next year.”
So, what will be the Brewers’ next move? They have four openings on their 40-man roster, so there is space for additions. It was the bullpen that led the team to the National League Central crown at the end of last season, so look for Stearns to remain on the hunt for relief help.
Other than that, Stearns has the luxury of being patient and looking for the best values, be it via trade or free agency.
“We don’t have maybe some of the glaring needs we had in years past but there are always opportunities to improve,” he said. “Until you feel like you have the best player in baseball at every position, you have an opportunity to improve. We have a number of high-end players but we know we can get better.
“We’re in a fortunate spot where I don’t think there’s any one thing we must do. I do think we can be patient and explore what this off-season yields. Hopefully, we’ll find some value opportunities that both make us better and fit within the confines of our payroll structure. That’s what we’re going to try to do.
“We were rewarded last year in some ways by being patient. It’s not always easy to do, especially this time of year when there’s a whole lot of attention geared toward what’s going to happen over the next seven to 10 days. But we have to realize there’s a whole two months of off-season left after we leave Vegas and moves can happen then as well.”