3 second-half predictions for the Brewers at the trade deadline and beyond

Things have been trending up for the Milwaukee Brewers as of late. The Brew Crew is coming off a three-game sweep of the defending champions, the Los Angeles Dodgers, and has climbed squarely back into the National League playoff scene. In fact, the most recent projections from FanGraphs have the Brewers at a 74.6% chance of making the playoffs entering play on Friday. Meanwhile, the MLB Trade Deadline is fast approaching, and while things have been clicking for the Crew as of late, there is always room for improvement.

In some regards, it may feel like a long time since the Brewers "went for it" and added a significant piece at the deadline to help their postseason chances. In other ways, it feels like just yesterday that Milwaukee acquired CC Sabathia in 2008 to help them make their first trip to the postseason since 1982. A few seasons later, in 2011, it was Francisco Rodriguez that helped bring Milwaukee to its first NLCS in franchise history. Mike Moustakas was the big bat the team acquired at the 2018 deadline that helped launch the team back to the NLCS once again.

As bleak as things were in late April and early May, it has completely turned around for the 2025 squad as the All-Star Break approaches. A piece or two at this year's deadline could be a drastic difference between even making the postseason or a deep run.  Milwaukee certainly has plenty of trade chips should they choose to make a move, and a lower payroll than in years past. So what does that mean for the rest of the season?

1. Brewers swing a big trade at the deadline

It is hard to imagine a scenario in which Milwaukee does absolutely nothing at this year's deadline, though an obvious move has yet to present itself. The most needed piece is some sort of consistent bat to shore up the lineup, particularly at one of three infield positions (Brice Turang isn't going anywhere). The Brewers have already been floated by league experts as alanding spot for guys like Ronald Acuña Jr. and Alex Bregman. While those are far from reality, even being included in those conversations is music to Brewers fans' ears.

Milwaukee's deadline needs have gotten a bit murkier with the recent injury to Rhys Hoskins. Additionally, the inconsistency of Joey Ortiz and Caleb Durbin is worrisome in a potential playoff push, though the latter is quietly putting together an impressive rookie campaign. Andrew Vaughn has been great in the first few days of his Milwaukee tenure, but hasn't been the most consistent in his pro career. Adding a consistent bat to go along with the rest of the lineup would really help propel Milwaukee into the playoffs.

Some names to keep an eye on that would have a major impact on the Brewers' offense (in addition to the unrealistic Bregman and Acuña) are Eugenio Suarez and Josh Naylor of the Arizona Diamondbacks, Ryan O'Hearn of the Baltimore Orioles, Ryan McMahon of the Colorado Rockies, and maybe even outfielder Taylor Ward of the Los Angeles Angels, though his fit on the Brewers' roster is less clear. Acquiring any of those players would qualify as a big trade at the deadline and likely wouldn't come cheap for Matt Arnold and the Brewers’ front office.

2. Pitching carries Milwaukee down the stretch

Between Jacob Misiorowski's meteoric rise, the return of Brandon Woodruff, and Freddy Peralta's second All-Star season, the Brewers once again look like they have an elite pitching staff. Yes, it's only been five starts for Miz, and just one for Woody, but the former looks like a clear-cut Rookie of the Year candidate, and the latter looks like his old All-Star self. If the Brewers are going to make the postseason once again and do some damage in October, it will be on the back of this emerging three-headed monster.

The beauty of the situation is, there might be a fourth head on the way. Nestor Cortes is nearing his return and made a rehab start with the High-A Wisconsin Timber Rattlers last night. And that's without mentioning José Quintana and Quinn Priester, who have both been above-average installments in the Brewers rotation. Oh, and by the way, the organization has the best Triple-A rotation in baseball.

That doesn't even include the bullpen. Headlined by newly crowned All-Star Trevor Megill and supported by Abner Uribe, Nick Mears, and Jared Koenig, the Brewers have formed a formidable force at the back-end of the bullpen. Add in two lethal lefty long-relievers in Aaron Ashby and DL Hall, and runs will be hard to come by against the Crew down the stretch. Offense seemingly comes and goes in Milwaukee. Pitching, however, is the lifeblood of this franchise.

3. NLDS is a minimum

While I would love to predict the "Win One for Ueck" that we all want to see this fall, let's start with the NLDS. Milwaukee has not won a playoff series since their 2018 run to the NLCS. In fact, they've only won two playoff games since then.

The Brewers have struggled in the new, best two out of three format, failing to win the big games at home. Reassuringly, it hasn't just been the Brewers that have had difficulty with the new format. Since MLB made the switch in 2022, the higher seed is just 4-8 in the Wild Card Series across MLB.

Let's not forget that in the last three postseason appearances, the Brewers have dealt with a devastating injury in the second half of the season. Last year it was Christian Yelich, in 2023 it was Woody, and in 2021 Devin Williams broke his hand after punching a wall. If the Crew can stay healthy, they have the roster to win at least one playoff series. And once they've won one, what's three more?

In a three-game series, no team will want to face the combination of Peralta, Miz, and Woody, and navigating a five- or seven-game series with three elite starters is much easier than trying to do so with one or two. It's going to be an exciting second half of the season for the Crew, who sit just two games back of the Chicago Cubs in the NL Central and currently hold the NL's top Wild Card seed.