This Major Roster Decision Could Define Brewers' Entire Season

Expecting the Milwaukee Brewers to make the big win-now move is usually a fool's errand, but this season brings a compelling argument for one such move.

Most of this Brewers roster is championship-caliber. Then there's the left side of the infield, which features arguably the worst everyday hitter in the league in Joey Ortiz, underwhelming free-agent pickup Luis Rengifo, and some exciting, yet high-risk prospects in Jett Williams and Cooper Pratt.

So the question is this: Do the Brewers do the typical Brewers thing and count on things to sort themselves out? Or do they finally decide their current championship window is important enough to make a trade for a genuine impact bat?

If you like our content, choose Sports Illustrated as a preferred source on Google.

Why this decision matters

The Brewers have gotten to where they are as a franchise by explicitly not making the types of trades we're suggesting. In fact, they typically do the opposite: They trade their best players a year before they hit free agency, so they can recoup surplus value for those expiring contracts and keep their talent pool deeper than their competition.

That typically plays well in the regular season, when depth is perhaps the most important thing a team can have. But it's hard to argue that the approach has paid off in October, where the Brewers have just one series win this decade.

Who could Brewers target?

Apr 30, 2026; Baltimore, MD, USA; Houston Astros infielder Isaac Paredes (15) fields a ground ball in the ninth inning against the Baltimore Orioles at Oriole Park at Camden Yards. Mandatory Credit: Jamie Sabau-Imagn Images | Jamie Sabau-Imagn Images

It's fair to say we have limited information about what sorts of bats could be available at this year's deadline. But compared to years past, it does seem like there could be a few more bats on the left side of the infield available than usual.

However, a lot of those bats would be expensive. If the San Francisco Giants want to offload the huge contracts of Matt Chapman and/or ex-Brewer Willy Adames, that's probably not Milwaukee's place to step in. Ditto for Houston Astros third baseman/shortstop Carlos Correa, whose deal runs through at least 2028 and potentially a lot longer.

So right now, Astros teammate Isaac Paredes probably checks the most boxes. He's under control for this year and next, he's a steady bat with an underappreciated glove at third base, and he could either shift to first base next year when Andrew Vaughn hits free agency or become trade bait again in the winter.

There will be other names that make sense who emerge in the coming months. But whoever is on the market, there's no doubt that president of baseball operations Matt Arnold has a big decision to make.

Add us as a preferred source on Google