Brewers reach settlements before arbitration deadline with all but one player

Arbitration filing deadline day has arrived. The Milwaukee Brewers entered the day with six players in the arbitration process needing to determine their salaries for the 2025 season. Now that the noon deadline has passed, the Brewers have come to terms with five of them.

Trevor Megill, Joel Payamps, Nestor Cortes, Aaron Civale, Nick Mears, and William Contreras were the Brewers players in the arbitration process.

Fansided's Robert Murray was the first to report the settlements on all these Brewers players.

Brewers reach deals with everyone to avoid arbitration with the notable exception of William Contreras (so far)

Trevor Megill was due a solid raise after tallying 20 saves last year, filling in for Devin Williams as the Brewers closer for a few months. Megill enters 2025 as the presumptive closer with Williams now in New York. Megill settled with the Brewers for a $1.94 million salary, just slightly under MLBTR's projection of $2 million in his first year of arbitration.

Joel Payamps struggled in the first half of last year but was dominant in the second half, posting a 1.11 ERA in 28 appearances after the All Star Break. Payamps will return to a high leverage role in Milwaukee's bullpen, settling with the Brewers for $2.995MM, just slightly over MLBTR's projection of $2.8MM. He's in his second year of arbitration.

Nestor Cortes was acquired from the Yankees in the Devin Williams trade. The 30 year old lefty starter should slot right into the Brewers rotation and he settled with the Brewers on a $7.6 million salary for 2025, his final season of arbitration before reaching free agency. MLBTR projected him slightly higher at $7.7 million.

Aaron Civale was acquired last July for infield prospect Gregory Barrios. He turned in a 3.53 ERA with the Crew to finish the year and will return to the rotation again in 2025. Civale settled with the Brewers on a $8 million salary for 2025, exactly in line with MLBTR's projection. Civale, like Cortes, is in his final year of arbitration before hitting free agency after this next season.

Nick Mears was another July acquisition last season. He initially struggled with some adjustments to Milwaukee and had a penchant for the long ball, but bounced back with a shutout inning in Game 3 of the Wild Card series. He's a Super-Two eligible player, meaning he has four arbitration years and is in just his first one. Mears settles with the Brewers for $963,000 for 2025

William Contreras did not reach an agreement with the Brewers before the publication of this article. The Brewers have typically been a "file and trial" team, but there's still the possibility of reaching a deal on a salary for this season before a trial or even a contract extension. Arbitration trials are set to take place in early February if a settlement cannot be reached.