Milwaukee Brewers: 3 Candidates to Get the Team's Next Contract Extension

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Prior to recent days, the chances of seeing the phrases "Milwaukee Brewers" and "unprecedented contract extension" in the same sentence would have been extremely rare, to say the least. Yet, here we are.

The Brewers stunned the baseball world when they finalized a contract extension with team's top prospect, and the No. 2 prospect in all of baseball, Jackson Chourio. At eight years and $82MM plus contract options, it is the largest contract ever to be handed to a prospect who hasn't yet played a single game in the majors.

The extension gives the Brewers a new face of the franchise for many years to come, allowing them to continue to mold the team of the future. Another way to do that would be to hand out an extension to another deserving player.

Currently, the Brewers only have three other players on long-term contracts: Christian Yelich, Aaron Ashby, and Freddy Peralta. Adding to that group could both give Chourio the support he needs to be successful and give the team a better chance of success moving forward. But to whom would it make the most sense to give an extension?

Here are three candidates to get the next contract extension from the Milwaukee Brewers.

1. C William Contreras

After being acquired from the Braves last offseason in one of GM Matt Arnold's first big moves at the helm, catcher William Contreras was expected to come in and provide some extra punch for the offense. He did exactly that, and more.

Contreras finished his first season in Milwaukee batting .289 with a .825 OPS, slugging 38 doubles and 17 homers, and driving in 78. That performance earned him a Silver Slugger award at the catcher position for the National League and even some MVP votes.

Contreras also significantly improved his defense, a common occurrence for catchers acquired by the Brewers. He finished in the top 10 among NL catchers in both Defensive Runs Saved (5) and Catcher Framing Runs Saved (7).

The Brewers still have four years of control left on Contreras and a long extension could both buy out those years and some free agent years as well. And if top catching prospect Jeferson Quero ends up being as good as advertised, Contreras could eventually be transitioned to DH, solving another position of issue for Milwaukee. Plus, just think of a Chourio-Contreras combo in the lineup year after year.

2. OF Sal Frelick

Even before the Brewers locked up Chourio, there was a lot of excitement surrounding the wave of young outfield talent that was to eventually arrive in the majors. That arrival finally happened over the last couple years.

Of that group of players, the one with the most potential might just be Sal Frelick. The 2021 15th overall pick was a top three prospect on the team prior to making his debut last season and was at one point a Top 100 prospect in all of baseball.

Frelick's career minor league numbers are outstanding with a slash line of .314/.393/.451 over the course of 197 games. Unfortunately, injuries affected his 2023 season and delayed his MLB debut, but in late July it was time to head to The Show.

Frelick stormed out of the gate, going 7-for-23 with a double and a homer in his first six games. He also added highlight reel plays in the field, adding yet another strong outfield defender into the mix for the Crew.

Though things cooled down toward the end of the season for Frelick, as they would for many 23-year-olds. However, he still finished the season with a very solid .341 on base percentage and a 1.2 bWAR supported in part by his strong defense.

One needs to just look to Arizona and Corbin Carroll to see just how big having a talented, young table setter at the top of the lineup can be. Yelich has performed well in the role over the last couple years, but a more prototypical leadoff hitter might be even better.

3. 1B/3B Tyler Black

The Brewers currently do not really have a solution at either of their corner infield spots at the moment. Luckily, they have a prospect about to break through to the majors who can play both positions in infielder Tyler Black.

Black was selected just 18 picks after Frelick in the 2021 draft. Like Frelick, Black came with a reputation of having a pure ability to just get on base, and also like Frelick, Black has done exactly that in his minor league career.

In his 213 games of minor league action, Black has a career .279/.415/.465 slash line with 42 doubles and 23 homers. Last season, he decided to add a stolen base element to his repertoire, swiping a whopping 55 bags across the Double-A and Triple-A levels.

The corner infield positions have been a point of concern for the Brewers for a few years now. It felt like Rowdy Tellez might be the answer at first base before poor production eventually led to a non-tender this offseason. And they haven't had a remotely consistent answer at third since a couple solid seasons of Travis Shaw.

Of course this would mean giving another extension to a player who hasn't played an MLB game yet. While he is a very talented prospect, Black is nowhere near the level of Chourio. So if the former were to be the next Brewers player to get an extension, it might be because they wait until the season begins to give another one and Black has gotten the chance to prove that he's the one that deserves it.

The Brewers haven't doled out a ton of contract extensions over the years. But no one has given one like they just gave to Chourio recently, so maybe they can be the start of a new trend going into the future.

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