Brewers Former Hurler Becomes Free Agent Before NLDS

The former Milwaukee Brewers hurler is leaving the organization.

Jun 1, 2026; Cincinnati, Ohio, USA; Cincinnati Reds starting pitcher Lyon Richardson (72) pitches against the Kansas City Royals in the first inning at Great American Ball Park. Mandatory Credit: Katie Stratman-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

The Milwaukee Brewers lost a bit of pitching depth ahead of the National League Division Series.

Milwaukee will begin its 2026 playoff run on Saturday, Oct. 3 against the San Diego Padres at American Family Field. One player who will not be in the organization during the series is veteran righty Lyon Richardson. The Brewers promoted Richardson to the big leagues on Sep. 23 and then designated him for assignment two days later on Sep. 25. Rather than sticking around in the organization and being outrighted down to the minors, Richardson officially elected free agency from the organization on Sep. 28, per his official MLB.com profile.

This move isn't likely to hurt the Brewers much, although you'd obviously prefer to have more big league depth in an organization, rather than less. Richardson made just one appearance in a Brewers uniform this season and tossed 1 2/3 scoreless innings, to go along with one strikeout. In total, Richardson has appeared in 42 big league games in his professional career dating back to 2023.

Lyon Richardson Is A Free Agent

Cincinnati Reds pitcher Lyon Richardson (72) poses for a portrait during the Cincinnati Reds picture day, Tuesday, Feb. 17, 2026, at the Cincinnati Reds player development complex in Goodyear, Ariz. | USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect

He began his big league career as a member of the Cincinnati Reds. To this point, the best season of his big league career came in 2025 with the Reds. He appeared in 34 games in the majors, which is his career high, and he logged a 4.54 ERA. His 34 appearances are the most in his career by a wide margin. He has never appeared in more than four big league games in a season, outside of the 2025 campaign.

Richardson made 22 appearances with Triple-A Nashville and had a 4.23 ERA and a 45-to-25 strikeout-to-walk ratio in 44 2/3 innings pitched.

Again, this move doesn't hurt the Brewers now. He wasn't going to be on the playoff roster and likely wouldn't have been close to being considered for a spot, unless a few different injuries popped up. Milwaukee signed Richardson to a minor league deal initially back in June. He even elected free agency previously, but returned. It's almost impossible to get a minor league deal wrong, and the Brewers didn't in this situation.

With Richardson, the Brewers got a depth arm to pitch in Triple-A at a low cost. They needed an extra arm in the final few days of the regular season and gave him a look and he did what Milwaukee could've hoped for. The move may not have been massively impactful in the playoff race, but good teams load up on pitching depth. Richardson was that for Milwaukee. The Brewers just didn't need to use all of it.