The Brewers are concerned about their 2026 payroll, according to reporting from Will Sammon, Ken Rosenthal and Katie Woo of The Athletic. The reporters then wonder if this will lead the Brewers to more seriously consider trading right-hander Freddy Peralta.
Milwaukee extended a $22.025MM qualifying offer to Brandon Woodruff at the end of the season. Even though he had big health questions marks, MLBTR predicted he could land a three-year, $66MM deal in free agency, even with the QO attached. However, Woodruff decided to accept.
That’s a bit of a double-edged sword for the Brewers. On the one hand, it strengthens their 2026 rotation. Woodruff missed all of 2024 and most of 2025 but was fantastic when on the bump this year. He made 12 starts, pitching 64 2/3 innings with a 3.20 earned run average, 32.3% strikeout rate and 5.4% walk rate. He finished the season on the injured list with a lat strain but is expected to be healthy for the start of 2026.
The downside is that Woodruff is now taking up a huge chunk of the budget and puts the Brewers in an unusual spot. Woodruff becomes just the second Brewer in franchise history to be making at least $20MM annually. The other is Christian Yelich, who is making $26MM annually through 2028, in addition to a $6.5MM buyout on a 2029 mutual option.
Milwaukee generally runs a payroll a bit north of the century mark. RosterResource estimated that they finished last year at $123MM. With Woodruff’s new deal on the books, they are projected for $136MM next year.
The roster is already in pretty good shape, considering this is a team that led the majors with 97 wins in 2025. With Woodruff’s return, they haven’t lost any major contributors to free agency. Still, all teams want flexibility to make offseason moves and it’s possible the Brewers are too rigid at the moment. Trading Woodruff isn’t an option as players who accept a QO can’t be dealt without their consent until June 15th.
Even before Woodruff accepted the QO, Peralta was a speculative trade candidate. That’s because the Brewers have a history of trading their best players before they become free agents. Recent examples include Josh Hader, Corbin Burnes and Devin Williams. Peralta is slated for free agency after 2026. However, the Brewers don’t always go down that road. They held Willy Adames until he became a free agent, for instance. Peralta is only owed $8MM next year, so it’s not like trading him could lead to massive cost savings.
But that $8MM figure would at least get the Brewers closer to last year’s payroll. On top of that, Peralta has enough value to bring back usable players to upgrade other parts of the roster. Arguably, Peralta is not as good as Burnes was when the latter was dealt. However, Burnes was going to make almost twice as much in his final year before free agency. He and the Brewers agreed to a salary just north of $15.6MM before he was traded to the Orioles. The financial difference could lead to Peralta having roughly the same trade value now as Burnes did at that time.
Flipping Burnes to Baltimore allowed the Brewers to receive Joey Ortiz, DL Hall and a Competitive Balance Round A draft pick. Ortiz and Hall were borderline top 100 prospects at the time and both had already reached the majors. It’s therefore possible to imagine the Brewers looking to flip Peralta to save a bit of money while also simultaneously allowing them to address other parts of the roster without having to spend on free agents.
In that scenario, the Brewers could theoretically still have a good rotation, even without Peralta. If healthy, it would be fronted by Woodruff. It’s possible that Jacob Misiorowski takes a step forward and becomes a front-of-rotation guy. Quinn Priester, Chad Patrick, Logan Henderson, Robert Gasser, Tobias Myers and others would be in the mix as well.
For what it’s worth, Brewers owner Mark Attanasio and president of baseball operations Matt Arnold both downplayed the idea that Woodruff’s signing would lead to a Peralta trade. Per Sammon and Rosenthal last week, both Attanasio and Arnold said the two things were “independent decisions” and expressed excitement about the rotation with Woodruff in it. Of course, if the Brewers were thinking about trading Peralta, it wouldn’t help their leverage to publicly admit it.
If Peralta is out there, it’s possible that the Brewers could benefit from the market conditions. It was generally expected that Joe Ryan and Pablo López would be available this winter but Twins president of baseball operations Derek Falvey downplayed the idea earlier this month. The Marlins were also expected to make Sandy Alcantara and Edward Cabrera available but the Fish reportedly need to add payroll rather than subtract. Sonny Gray has already been traded to the Red Sox and one prominent free agent has already come off the board with the Blue Jays agreeing to a deal with Dylan Cease. There are still some good arms out there but Peralta is far cheaper than the best free agents, which could make him attractive to big spenders and lower-payroll clubs alike.
Photo courtesy of Michael McLoone, Imagn Images
Attanasio’s net worth is about $2 billion, but that’s just an off topic nugget of info, unrelated to anything here. carry on! 😉
That net worth should still be enough to have the brewers in the 150 million payroll range
Net worth is irrelevant, alot of that net worth is his ownership of the Brewers, its not like hes got 2 billion in the bank. Thats not even factoring in he isnt the sole owner.
That said, im not sure I buy this report, a minority owner was on local radio a couple days before Woody accepted the QO, and said payroll would be going up. Opening day payroll was 108 last year, and they are around that now.
How much of that net worth is liquid? This is a good reason why mlb needs a salary floor. This is a contending team that’s been drawing good numbers for a few years yet 1 20 million dollar contract to a potential ace is crippling the club? Meanwhile the Red Sox are giving 40 million to a 37 year old mid rotation starter. This league needs to have more structure in place when it comes to salary so teams can’t cry woah is me when it comes to what’s turned into an average salary for mid high tier players
Google says $760m. Barely north of the Dodgers single year payroll after accounting for deferred payments.
As a Brewers fan I find it somewhat funny that the Brewers figured that Woodruff would never accept the QO. now that he has their whining about their team payroll for next year.
Tigers.
Both.
Rare misstep by the FO. 99% of the time the QO goes the way the team thinks it will. In this case Woodruff froze them with a devastating sweeper that has the owner talking to himself.
Didn’t they get extra money from making the playoffs, winning the division, etc. They need to keep Peralta, suck it up, and if necessary, trade him later.
Yeah like 100 dollah. Not much. Gotta cover added expense of hookers and blow for Kegman
I wonder if all of the players accepting this year will affect how many teams offer it next year.
I also wonder how the impending lockout will factor into QO decisions.
I can understand it. As a lower payroll team they need every edge they can get to extend their great success of the last 7-8 years so they really want that pick. They just hoped he would decline and they get the pick
They where going to trade Peralta with or without Woodruff, I do believe when they say it’s two separate things
For that amount of money, i am a hard pass.
Thats what she said
This is the main issue with MLB. If clubs and ownerships are unwilling to spend money yet set astronomical prices for parking, food and drink especially alcohol, tickets in the $75-$100 plus range for single games but unwilling to sign and keep their best players then they shouldn’t be MLB clubs.
MLB must enforce a salary floor around the $125m mark or more. And if teams like MLW, PIT, CHW, MIA, OAK/SAC, CLE, MIN, ANA, TBR, etc don’t want to pay up then they should be folded OR MLB should start implementing what European domestic soccer leagues have as a top “premier” league and other lower tiers and introduce relegation and promotion! Would make things somewhat fair, accurate and exciting.
Ana? Like the angels?
Yea, I just can’t call them the LA Angels. Anaheim is a great area and that’s where they are next to the Ducks.
Not sure what happened to them. They had such strong teams with great players from the late 1990s to about 3/4 years ago. But now not even relevant. Another terrible owner in Arte Moreno I guess.
No matter how hard Arte tries, he cannot convince us that the Angels are a Los Angeles team.
Totally agree. If we’re talking revenue disparities let’s talk about the fact that the clubs spending the lowest percentages on payroll are disproportionately small market teams.
Still, there was no justification for offering Woodruff the QO. He spent a year and a half rehabbing, then lasted 12 starts before getting injured again. In no world was he getting a multi year deal.
Yes another billionaire barely able to exist. Please start a go fund me page the poor guy.
Have they considered trying to offload Yelich’s contract, or is he practically untradeable at this point in his career?
100 RBI and 29 HR? Somebody in need of a DH could use him.
I don’t think he’s untradeable, they just wouldn’t get much if anything for him and would probably have to eat money. He’s 3/78 mil DH with a 6.5 mil buyout. I dont think he can go back to full time outfielder and stay healthy. Plus his no trade
He’s also still really valuable in the Brewers lineup as their most powerful slugger. I doubt they traded him because while yes he’s dropped off from his MVP numbers he’s still a really good player when healthy. Keeping him DHing most days has helped him stay healthy.
At this point you need to be actively rooting for the cancellation of the 2027 season. the long term health of the game hinges on it.
we are not sustainable at this current arrangement.
Milwaukee had the best record in baseball last year.
What a terrible outcome.
I’m not rooting for a lockout.
I’m rooting for baseball.
Bit by the old QO! lol.
Lol at Mercenary.Freddie.Freeman, not the qualifying offer
Who knew?!
It’s Ken Rosenthal and the Athletic so the truth is likely the opposite of whatever he is saying.
Dont make him mad he come nipping at your heels with his whiny voice
Milwaukee is the smallest MLB market so no surprise they want to keep payroll low. The central issue that MLB has to address is revenue. The revenue difference between the richest and poorest MLB teams is the largest of any North American professional sports league, and that is with some level of revenue sharing. The richest teams not only can spend double or more on payroll than the poorest teams, they can also spend more on player development, facilities, etc. And the richest teams also have the richest owners who care less about actual profit. It is a testament to the Brewers organization that they have remained competitive despite obvious financial constraints. I don’t know how that gets fixed. Caps and floors and increased revenue sharing are fraught with their own problems as well.
Unless of course you are of the ilk that all owners are rich and the owners of the lower revenue teams should spend their personal fortune on the team. That isn’t the reality and never will be the reality.
Does it need to be fixed?
“Unless of course you are of the ilk that all owners are rich and the owners of the lower revenue teams should spend their personal fortune on the team. That isn’t the reality and never will be the reality.”
Because it is the reality and will always be the reality no matter how much you try to look smart or act condescending, Christopher Ilitch.
“Unless of course you are of the ilk that all owners are rich and the owners of the lower revenue teams should spend their personal fortune on the team. That isn’t the reality and never will be the reality.”
There is an exception to this rule: owners who are dying. Each small market team should be trying to attract this brand of billionaire so they can spend stupid money (aftermath usually doesn’t go well).
(Yes, I’m being facetious)
Peralta to the Mets for Mauricio and Santucci
You misspelled Tong and Clifford.
Sell the team
I respect that this owner is honest about what he says to the media about payroll (unlike nutting or fisher) but it shouldn’t excuse the fact that he won’t spend
The brewers won 97 games and made it to the NLCS, and have a loyal fan base that revenue should be enough to afford to keep woodruff and peralta
What a joke. Every one of these budget teams gets at least $200 mil from revenue sharing, sponsorship sharing, media sharing, etc.
There is no reason any team cannot afford at least $150 mil on player salaries.
The Crew have a chance to have 2 top line starters fronting the rotation this year and go as well as last year; why go cheap and spoil that chance?
Its not that He doesn’t have the money, rather that he doesn’t want to spend it to invest on the city of Milwaukee. Meanwhile hes trying to prop up a second tier English football team.
Sell it to someone who loves Wisconsin and isn’t an unrepentant piece of crap like the Uhleins or John Menard
Any Brewer fans out there with insights into why Woodruff accepted the arbitration offer? As a Red Sox fan, he and Bieber were my top targets with Gray being the top trade target (so more of a consolation prize).
Do you think he may approve a trade or is he really set at staying in Milwaukee?
What would the Brewers want for him? Would a player like Kutter Crawford (cheap-ish 3/4 starter with 3 years of control) interest them?
I think a lot of players decided to maximize their one year earnings because they know there is a lockout coming.
I would add Christian Yelich, who is pulling in twenty-six million dollars a year through 2028, plus a six-and-a-half-million dollar buyout waiting on that 2029 mutual option. With that kind of financial weight on the roster, the Brewers should add him and will look more seriously at moving right-hander Freddy Peralta as well to a big market team!!!
Honestly, the Brewers should package the whole thing. Send Yelich and Peralta together to a big-market team that can actually afford the tab, and in return ask for a clean Top-100 prospect and a couple of lotto-ticket youngsters. Call it Milwaukee’s version of “Buy one superstar, get one pitcher half-off after Thanksgiving giving sale!!!”
Love it! The owners are playing their role of being poor billionaires just before the lockout. Sounds like the Yankees are really struggling, financially, as well. I wouldn’t be surprised if they end up with the Tampa Bay Rays model, going forward, just to save some money for those billionaires. Baseball’s just not profitable anymore…