NL Central preview: 2. Milwaukee Brewers
It was another frustrating offseason for Brewers fans, with the team failing to spend significant money in free agency. While virtually no money was spent, it was also hard to ignore the trade rumors that floated around for key players such as Corbin Burnes, Willy Adames and Christian Yelich. Regardless, the team will have to move on from the offseason turmoil and compete for their fifth playoff appearance in the last six seasons.
They’ll have to do it with a lineup that has a lot to prove this season. Similar to Cody Bellinger, it’s time to accept the reality of Christian Yelich as a player. 2022 marked Yelich’s third season with under 15 home runs, making it clear he is no longer the slugging outfielder he used to be. But let’s still give Yelich his due credit; he’s posted a 107 wRC+ over the past two seasons, which is still above average. With it clear Yelich is no longer the main producer, the lineup is really composed of a bunch of hitters that are above average when it comes to offensive production. Rowdy Tellez, Luis Urias, Willy Adames, Luke Voit and Jesse Winker all fit this category. They are all solid, above-average hitters at this point in their careers. William Contreras is the one outlier in this lineup, who posted a terrific 138 wRC+ in 376 at-bats last season. However, Contreras is an outlier because he wasn’t an everyday player. At times he would platoon with catcher Travis D’Arnaud for rest, or slot into the DH spot for favorable matchups. Maybe I’m being a little too nit-picky here, but Contreras will have to prove that he can replicate these incredible numbers under a little bit more difficult circumstances, along with a much larger sample size.
Former first-rounders Garrett Mitchell and Sal Frelick are two young prospects to keep an eye on. While it’s unclear if Frelick will start the season on the big league roster, he’s a clear impact player, notably receiving votes for the 2023 NL Rookie of the Year conducted with front office executives. Garrett Mitchell was a late august call-up, posting a 136 wRC+ over 68 at-bats last season. He’s carried this impressive production into spring training, homering twice in the Brewers Cactus League opener.
It’s also important to mention that this lineup is objectively deep. Brian Anderson, Victor Caratini, Abraham Toro, Mike Brosseau and Owen Miller are all experienced quality players who will likely be slated on Milwaukee’s bench.
Though the Brewers didn’t crack my top five starting rotations, they sure came pretty close. It’s a loaded rotation with a top three featuring Corbin Burnes, Brandon Woodruff and Freddy Peralta. To many baseball writers including me, Burnes is the consensus best pitcher overall pitcher in our game. Unfortunately for Brewers fans, Burnes is a bit frustrated with the team after his arbitration hearing. If things go south this season, could we possibly see him traded at the deadline?
It was business as usual for Brandon Woodruff last season, who posted another strong 3.05 ERA, which eclipsing a career-high 11.15 K/9 over 153 innings of work last year. Freddy Peralta only registered 78 innings last season, but still managed to post a solid 3.58 ERA (3.08 FIP). If this top three can post a stat line similar to the 2021 season, it might just be able to carry Milwaukee to another division title. The rotation is rounded out with southpaws Eric Lauer and Aaron Ashby, who are both strong options at the four and five spots in the rotation. Ashby struggled a bit last year in his rookie season, but is incredibly talented and capable of bouncing back this year. Ashby will start the year on IR, with veteran Wade Miley taking his place for the time being.
You can’t preview this team without taking a look at the bullpen, which has certainly seen a lot of changes over the past year. After trading away Josh Hader, Devin Williams became the star of the bullpen, and with good reason. Williams had another incredible season last year, becoming the first Brewers relief pitcher to go 30 relief appearances without allowing a single earned run. After losing Hader, Brent Suter and Brad Boxberger, the bullpen is now a little more thin. Aside from Williams, veterans Matt Bush and Jake Cousins are the other high-leverage options.
While it’s clear Milwaukee has elite pitching, it’s fair to say this lineup does not have enough firepower to compete at the top of the National League. But hopefully the Brewers will address this later in the season. There’s no denying they’ll be in the hunt for a Wild Card spot.