Brewers 2025 Winter Meetings recap: trade rumors, Rule 5 redemption, Murphy honored

The Milwaukee Brewers didn't sign Kyle Schwarber at the 2025 Winter Meetings. Nor did they hand Edwin Díaz the largest annual salary of any relief pitcher in MLB history, which would have been the largest Milwaukee had ever given to any pitcher for that matter, broken just weeks ago by Brandon Woodruff and his acceptance of the qualifying offer.

However, while their contending NL counterparts added contracts to their payroll that are bound to include a few ugly years, the Brewers were doing exactly what they should be: making it known that several of their expected trade candidates are available, but that it will take a significant offer for Milwaukee to move them. With such a strategy, Matt Arnold and company practically guarantee success for the front office this winter. Either, they complete a lopsided trade, setting their team up for the sustained success they have enjoyed for nearly a decade, or they maintain their record-breaking 2025 squad next season and hope the ball bounces their way this year, to reference William Contreras's letter to Brewers fans that he penned just before last year's postseason.

Regardless of which path Arnold and the Brewers' front office ultimately follows this winter, the organization set themselves up for success at the 2025 Winter Meetings by not doing much at all. Aside from a few trade rumors popping up, exposing that Arnold is considering which markets he can take advantage of this offseason, and some wise decisions during this year's Rule 5 Draft, the Brewers simply made clear that they are open for business at the right price during this week's gathering in Orlando. Such is the strategy that has led them to their ongoing Golden Age, and such is the strategy that will prolong this period of winning for many years to come. Here are three storylines that emerged from the 2025 Winter Meetings.

Brewers make clear their trade candidates are available for the right (high) price at 2025 Winter Meetings

Three Brewers were included in trade rumors that popped up during the 2025 Winter Meetings. Unsurprisingly, Freddy Peralta's name continues to float around the trade market. Ken Rosenthal and Will Sammon reported just last night that big-market clubs like the "Baltimore Orioles, Boston Red Sox, New York Yankees, San Francisco Giants and Houston Astros are among the teams in on Peralta" giving weight to an earlier rumor that the high free agent prices were leading to more interest in the Brewers' ace.

Additionally, both Adam McCalvy of MLB.com and Joel Sherman of The New York Post reported that the Brewers have fielded calls from both New York teams for All-Star closer Trevor Megill. The team at The Athletic also noted that reliever Nick Mears, who offers an appealing alternative to the high free agent contracts relief pitchers have been earning this winter, has been garnering interest from other teams as well.

As previously noted, Milwaukee is in the perfect spot; they don't need to deal any of the aforementioned names for payroll concerns, leaving them able to set the standard of "needing to be blown away by an offer" in order to agree to any trade. And with Megill's projected arbitration salary of just $4.2 million and Mears' at a mere $1.6 million, teams will surely pay the prospect capital to avoid the high salaries free agents are commanding.

Brewers add high upside arm in minor league Rule 5 Draft, don't lose any prospects in major league rounds

The Rule 5 Draft is an interesting wrinkle in the MLB offseason, one that occurs at the tailend of the Winter Meetings. The draft, serving as a way for teams to add major league talent from other organizations’ farm systems that are blocked in their current depth charts, has brought names like Gus Varland and Connor Thomas to Milwaukee in recent years. Isaac Collins was selected by the Brewers during the minor league portion of the draft, which functions similarly to its major league counterpart, but drafted prospects are immediately added to the Triple-A roster rather than the big-league 40-man.

The Brewers were quiet during the major league portion of this year's Rule 5 Draft; they neither added any new players nor lost any of their own during the MLB rounds -- a welcomed change from last year when they lost now-All-Star pitcher Shane Smith after the Chicago White Sox selected him with the first overall pick. However, when the minor league rounds came around, the Brewers did lose six prospects to other organizations: Hedbert Pérez, Nate Peterson, Garrett Spain, Zavier Warren, Caden Vire, and Hansel Rincon. On the bright side, Milwaukee added an intriguing arm in Cole Phillips during the first round of the MiLB Rule 5 Draft, snatching him away from the Seattle Mariners' farm system.

Despite being a second-round draft pick back in 2022, Phillips has yet to appear in a professional game due to injuries. However, when the Atlanta Braves selected him three years ago out of high school, Phillips was already touching the upper 90s with his fastball. An electric arm under the guidance of the Brewers' excellent pitching department, if Phillips can stay healthy, he will be a very interesting addition to Milwaukee's farm system. It's the type of low-risk, high-reward move that should be executed during the minor league phase of the Rule 5 Draft.

Pat Murphy named Baseball America's Manager of the Year, adding to his rapidly-growing list of accolades

Milwaukee Brewers manager Pat Murphy comes across as one of the most grateful, selfless, confidence-instilling individuals in the game of baseball. It's ironic, therefore, that he continues to rack up individual accolades that he would no doubt rather be given to his team. Well, when it comes to the major baseball publication Baseball America, both Murphy and his team were the recipients of major awards this year. Just days after the Brewers were named Baseball America's best MLB organization of 2025, the publication named Pat Murphy their Manager of the Year.

Murphy was already named Manager of the Year by the BBWA, an award he's now won in each of his first two seasons as a full-time skipper, a feat only he and Stephen Vogt, the AL recipient of the award in 2024 and 2025, have accomplished.

Despite the Brewers' skipper's humility, it's hard to argue against Murphy's candidacy for the award. His team was once again underestimated last offseason when they lost Willy Adames to free agency and Devin Williams to a trade with the New York Yankees, so when they ended with the best record in baseball it's hard not to say that Murphy's managing was a large reason for the team's success. That said, Murphy will be the first to say that any manager of the year award is really more of an organization-wide honor than an individual achievement.