Brewers news: Alumni Home Run Derby, Freddy Peralta's record-breaking opportunity, Nestor Cortes' final rehab start

The Milwaukee Brewers have the best record in baseball, they have their ace on the bump tonight, their major offseason acquisition is nearing a return, and several Brewers' alumni will be competing in a home run derby following today's game to celebrate the 25th anniversary of the team's ballpark. What more could you want?

While trade rumors currently dominate the headlines, and the floodgates were opened by who else but Jerry Dipoto of the Seattle Mariners, whose affinity for making deals is well known, there are several other headlines to look out for around the Brewers' organization this weekend. Here's a round-up of a few storylines to give you a break from the trade rumors.

Brewers alumni to compete in a televised home run derby after this afternoon's series opener against the Miami Marlins

That's right Brewers fans, tonight's alumni home run derby will be televised. Following the team's 3:10 p.m. contest against the Miami Marlins, a reported 10 Brewers' alumni will compete in a home run derby, with Ryan Braun and Carlos Gómez serving as the team captains. Coverage of the home run derby will be available on Fan Duel Sports Network Wisconsin directly following the game. FDSNW has an hour and a half blocked off for Brewers Live Postgame, which is when the derby will air.

Braun and Gomez will draft their teams from a pool of eight other Brewers alumni that includes Prince Fielder, Corey Hart, Bill Hall, Eric Thames, Nyjer Morgan, Keon Broxton, Yovani Gallardo, and Casey McGehee, creating two teams of five. It's bound to be an awesome night as the Brewers celebrate 25 years in Miller Park/American Family Field. You won't want to miss it.

Freddy Peralta has an opportunity to break several records with a win in today's game

The Brewers' ace, Freddy Peralta, will toe the rubber first for the Crew in today's series opener against the Marlins. Entering today's game, Peralta has an MLB-leading 12 wins on the season. Peralta has never won 13 games in a single season (he won 12 back in 2023), so a win this afternoon would set a season-high record for the 2x All-Star.

However, Peralta isn't just chasing personal history in this afternoon's start; he has a chance to make franchise history. If Peralta achieves his 13th win of the season tonight, he will be the fastest to do so in a single season since Jim Colborn reached 13 wins on July 18 in 1973. That said, Colborn was making his 25th start of the season on July 18, and Peralta's start tonight will be just his 22nd of the year.

The only pitcher in Brewers' history to achieve 13 wins in fewer starts than Peralta, should he grab a victory tonight, is Pete Vuckovich, who earned his 13th win of the season in his 21st start of the 1982 season. Teddy Higuera won his 13th game in his 22nd start of the 1986 season, meaning Peralta would tie him for the second-least amount of starts to achieve the 13-win mark in a single season, with a win in this afternoon's contest.

Nestor Cortes shines in what is most likely his final rehab start

With the deadline looming, the Brewers already have some difficult internal roster decisions to make, most notably how they will handle the return of their major offseason acquisition, Nestor Cortes. Cortes has missed most of the season with a flexor strain in his left elbow, but is now knocking on the door of the major league roster.

Cortes made what could very well be his final rehab start on Thursday night for the Nashville Sounds and displayed his "nasty" arsenal of pitches. Cortes tossed 90 pitches, covered 5.2 innings, allowed just one earned run, and struck out nine opposing hitters.

It remains to be seen how the Brewers will handle Cortes' return, but several options are present. They could simply add him to the major league roster and demote someone from the bullpen, giving the team a six-man rotation that could be used to limit the amount of innings that both Brandon Woodruff and Jacob Misiorowski throw, which is something the team has expressed interest in doing. Cortes could replace someone in the rotation, but the option there isn't clear — the only two Brewers starters with minor league options are Quinn Priester and The Miz, neither of whom can you justify demoting to Triple-A. Finally, the Brewers could trade either Cortes or a different starter ahead of next Thursday's trade deadline, thus ridding the team of their roster crunch. It's sure to be an interesting couple of days as the Brewers navigate Cortes' return and the trade deadline simultaneously.