Brewers Might Trade $34 Million Power Hitter If Record Doesn't Improve

This hot stretch needs to keep up, that's for certain

Sep 10, 2024; San Francisco, California, USA; General view of the helmet used by the Milwaukee Brewers before the start of the first inning against the San Francisco Giants at Oracle Park. Mandatory Credit: Stan Szeto-Imagn Images | Stan Szeto-Imagn Images

The Milwaukee Brewers might get so hot they quiet all trade deadline rumors, at least the kind that fans don't want to hear.

Having won five games in a row, the Brewers are two games above .500 for the first time since Apr. 22. They've been masters of the close game of late, with Friday night's 6-2 victory over the Philadelphia Phillies was their first win since May 22 that wasn't either a one-run game or an extra-innings affair.

There have been a lot of whispers that the Brewers could become trade deadline sellers, and there is some logic to that idea. They hadn't played well until recently, the National League is a gauntlet this season, and Milwaukee has chips to move.

Another good week or two might put the trade rumors to bed for a while, but for now, one baseball writer still believes an impending free agent slugger could be on the move.

On Friday, Bleacher Report's Kerry Miller named Brewers first baseman Rhys Hoskins as a potential "big name up for grabs" at this July's trade deadline.

Miller listed the Brewers in a group of "eight other middling teams who could make things mighty interesting by making some of their impending free agents available to the highest bidders."

"Can't imagine any of them would be selling if the deadline were today, but plenty of time for that pendulum to swing," Miller wrote.

Hoskins, 32, is having a much better 2025 season than 2024, and that could juice his trade value. He's in the latter half of a two-year, $34 million contract after exercising his player option for this season, and the Brewers should frankly be glad he came back.

With an .821 OPS, 16 extra-base hits, and 29 RBI in his 54 games so far, Hoskins has been a very good, though not quite elite, major league hitter. That would make him a valuable commodity for any team looking for more right-handed power.

Still, the Brewers would probably prefer to play this season out with their lineup at full strength, because the last few years of playoff disappointment have left a bitter taste in their mouths.

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