The Milwaukee Brewers could use another high-end bullpen arm…
One interesting talking point around the Milwaukee Brewers this offseason has been the future of Freddy Peralta.
Peralta is under contract with Milwaukee. Not only that, but Peralta is under an extremely affordable contract with Milwaukee. Peralta will make $8 million in his final season with the organization before heading to free agency. Now, an extension would take Peralta out of the running for free agency next offseason, but that’s a different conversation.
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He’s been the subject of trade rumors dating back to even before the 2025 trade deadline because Milwaukee has a trend of trading stars away before they can reach free agency. The Brewers did it with Josh Hader, Corbin Burnes, and Devin Williams, for example. Williams is the most recent star to go through this. Milwaukee traded him to the New York Yankees last offseason for Nestor Cortes and Caleb Durbin. A rough 2025 season could hurt his chances at a long-term deal, though.
Williams logged a 4.79 ERA in 67 appearances with the Yankees in 2025. That’s different from what Brewers fans saw. In 241 appearances with the organization, he logged a 1.83 ERA with Milwaukee.
He’s a free agent now and it will be interesting to see if he settles for a short-term, prove-it deal, or holds out to see if he can still get a long-term pact this offseason. If he settles for a short-term deal, MLB.com’s Mark Feinsand pitched him as the “perfect” match for Milwaukee.
“Brewers: Devin Williams, RHP,” Feinsand wrote. “Williams’ lone season in New York did not go the way the free agent was hoping it would, potentially costing him some money this winter. What better place to sign to re-establish his value than Milwaukee, the site of his greatest successes? If Williams is looking for a one-year deal with an eye on testing free agency again next year, the Brewers could be the ideal landing spot.”
That would be a pretty wild turn of events. Most of the chatter around Milwaukee is about its tendency to trade stars away early. To bring one back just one year after trading him away would be surprising, but it would help the organization. Milwaukee’s bullpen finished the 2025 regular season with the sixth-best bullpen ERA in baseball at 3.63. While this is the case, it was a step back from 2024. That season, Milwaukee finished with the second-best bullpen ERA in baseball at 3.11. The Brewers also had the second-best bullpen ERA in 2023.
Bringing back Williams on a prove-it deal would be a good way to bolster the bullpen. Plus, if Milwaukee struggled in 2026, he would be a perfect trade deadline candidate. This is a fun idea from Feinsand and is one the Brewers should consider.
