Brewers Voted As Contender With Most Disappointing MLB Trade Deadline

ESPN.com's David Schoenfield called the Milwaukee Brewers the "biggest loser" following the 2026 MLB trade deadline.

A slew of baseball experts polled by MLB.com agreed with Schoenfield's assessment.

A group of 29 MLB.com experts were asked numerous questions about the trade deadline for an article published on Thursday, with one prompt asking, "Which contending team had the most disappointing Deadline season?"

The Brewers garnered the most votes with 10, followed closely by the Atlanta Braves (nine).

"The Brewers have made the postseason in seven of the past eight years and led MLB with 97 wins in 2025, but they've continually fallen short of the franchise's first World Series title. With Milwaukee once again in contention for baseball's best record, many were clamoring for the club to go hard after Tarik Skubal -- not only to improve its own title chances but also to keep him away from the Dodgers, one of the Brewers' top competitors in the NL," the writeup said. "Alas, Skubal ended up in Los Angeles, while the Crew's Deadline additions consisted of Dustin May, JoJo Romero, Antonio Senzatela and Bo Naylor."

Milwaukee dropped its first post-deadline contest on Monday night against the Pittsburgh Pirates before bouncing back with two 4-2 victories vs. its NL Central foe.

How Have MLB Trade Deadline Additions Looked In Very Early Returns?

Aug 4, 2026; Milwaukee, Wisconsin, USA; Milwaukee Brewers relief pitcher Antonio Senzatela (49) delivers a pitch against the Pittsburgh Pirates in the seventh inning at American Family Field. Mandatory Credit: Michael McLoone-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

Starting pitcher Dustin May was acquired in a trade with the St. Louis Cardinals on Monday and is making his Brewers debut against the Pirates on Thursday.

Catcher Bo Naylor landed in Milwaukee via deal with the Cleveland Guardians on Saturday and is currently playing with Triple-A Nashville. The younger brother of 2024 All-Star first baseman Josh Naylor is 2-for-7 in two games with the Sounds.

Reliever JoJo Romero was traded to the Brewers with May and is currently on the 15-day injured list after undergoing an emergency appendectomy in mid-July.

Fellow relief pitcher Antonio Senzatela is the only newcomer to appear in multiple games with Milwaukee after the 31-year-old was acquired from the Colorado Rockies just before Monday's deadline.

Senzatela has picked up two holds in his pair of appearances with the Brewers thus far, recording one walk and one strikeout while facing four batters.

It was reported on Tuesday that Milwaukee offered three prospects to the Detroit Tigers in exchange for Tarik Skubal, including infielder Luis Pena.

That came after Brewers manager Pat Murphy vehemently denied that the team didn't make a strong pursuit for the two-time reigning AL Cy Young award winner.

Milwaukee did end up having a busy trade deadline, but that doesn't mean it was a good one.

Add us as a preferred source on Google