NEWSLETTER
From the moment Brandon Woodruff’s shoulder popped and required surgery, I wondered if we would see a report like this at some point. Not because one injury, alone, changes the entire trajectory of a team’s season, but because of everything that surrounds the loss of that one player. And then they also lost Craig Counsell.
According to Ken Rosenthal, the Milwaukee Brewers MAY go into a short rebuild. They may start selling off this offseason. After saying that the Brewers seem willing to entertain a sell-off strategy, Rosenthal writes:
“Executives at this time of year are always careful to tell reporters they are fielding calls on their players rather than shopping them. In that sense, the Brewers would say they are acting no differently than any club. But industry sources tell a different story.
Those sources, briefed on the Brewers’ discussions but not authorized to discuss them publicly, say the team is open to moving virtually any player on its roster ….
The breakup of this team is inevitable. It’s just a matter of how proactive the Brewers want to be in moving the process along.”
Before Woodruff’s injury, the Brewers were looking at the possibility of 2024 being a “one last hurrah” type season with him, Corbin Burnes, and Willy Adames, all of whom are free agents after 2024. Devin Williams, too, is a free agent after 2025. Maybe you go for it, and then re-assess at the Trade Deadline?
And then Woodruff got hurt and Counsell left, making the prospect of competing in 2024 that much more difficult. I’m not saying they couldn’t do it – I’ve learned not to rule the Brewers out – but in a world where it’s going to be tough anyway, why not see what you could get on the trade market right now for guys like Burnes and Adames and Williams?
The Brewers have an intriguing group of young outfielders and a crop of excellent prospects percolating, but it wasn’t hard to see how something of a “gap year” could really benefit them even before Woodruff/Counsell.
From my perspective, I kinda don’t want to see the Brewers sell off, and benefit themselves for the long-term. You’d much rather see them hang onto Burnes and Adames, and then lose them for nothing after the season. Sure, it makes the Cubs’ job in the 2024 NL Central slightly more difficult, but looking out further on the horizon, a short rebuild is the “right” move for the Brewers. So I don’t want them to make the “right” move.
Well, I mean, I guess if we’re just choosing our own adventure here, then I would root for the Brewers to sell off, but to be terrible at it and get hilariously bad returns in the deals …
