Brewers have a prime opportunity on trade market thanks to Padres' dysfunction

Both the Milwaukee Brewers and the Padres have been relatively quiet this off-season. The loudest move from the two came from the Brew Crew in the form of a widely expected trade of closer Devin Williams. For the Friars, they only most recently made their first big league transactions as they acquired recently DFA'd Ron Marinaccio and signed catcher Elias Diaz.

For Milwaukee, this type of off-season is normal. They make the moves they are expected to make, sign several under the radar type of players, and occasionally make a calculated risk by signing or trading for a player who won't hinder their payroll in future seasons.

On the other hand, this is outside of the norm for San Diego. They missed out on Roki Sasaki, lost All-Star Jurickson Profar in free agency, and have not made a splashy trade or free agent signing. In recent years, blockbuster deals involving Juan Soto, Dylan Cease, and Yu Darvish have occurred along with free agent signings of Manny Machado and Xander Bogaerts.

With the off-season winding down, teams are starting to feel the pressure to finalize rosters before spring training. This has intensified rumors around the league, in which Padres starting pitcher Dylan Cease has been a hot topic as a trade candidate. Here's how the Brewers could look to capitalize on this.

The Brewers have a prime opportunity to trade for Padres starter Dylan Cease

Despite the Padres inactivity this off-season, their aggressiveness in years past resulted in them being tied to numerous big contracts that they can't get out of. Branching off of that, reports this off-season have indicated that they little wiggle room left in regards to payroll for their 2025 roster. This has resulted in Dylan Cease, who is entering his final year of arbitration and will make $13.75 million, potentially becoming available via trade.

While San Diego would love to hold onto Cease, their odds of retaining him after this season seem slim as he will be one of, if not the best, free agent pitcher on the market. Trading him now, and potentially modeling a package as to what the Brewers and Orioles did with Corbin Burnes last off-season, may be in their best interest.

If the Brewers were to call the Padres regarding Cease, this would potentially mean they would call offering up a player with MLB experience as well as another prospect with minimal big league time, or who is ready to make that jump. Players that Milwaukee could use to make a deal work include left-handed pitcher Aaron Ashby plus a top prospect like infielder Tyler Black or catcher Jeferson Quero.

In this trade proposition, Milwaukee would be giving up a promising swing man in Ashby who they previously handed a long term deal to. He excelled out of the bullpen last year during his first full year back from shoulder surgery and is potentially under contract for five more seasons as he has club options attached to his 2028 and 2029 seasons. Moving him could back fire to be sure, but it could also free up payroll in future seasons.

Milwaukee would also be dealing from a position of strength in regard to prospects. They have a crowded infield, in which Black is not guaranteed an every day role, and catcher William Contreras is blocking Quero at the big league level.

This may seem like the Brewers would be giving up more for Cease than what they received in return for Burnes a season ago, but there are some big advantages. They could potentially move Ashby's contract, acquire a front line starter on an expiring deal, and then next off-season acquire a compensation pick when Cease rejects a qualifying offer and signs a monster deal elsewhere.

While Milwaukee does not make splashy trades often, this does seem like a prime opportunity for them to strengthen their 2025 team without hindering their future.

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