Revisiting the Brewers' 2025 midseason deals ahead of pivotal 2026 trade deadline

One year after earning the National League's No. 1 seed with a 97-65 record, the Milwaukee Brewers have somehow found ways to win even more games at a quicker pace. Through their first 103 games of the 2026 season, the Brewers compiled a franchise-best 64 wins, three more than they had at the same point a year ago.

Despite having a similar level of success through this point in the season, the 2025 and 2026 Brewers went about achieving it in vastly different ways. Whereas the 2026 squad has been consistently strong since a six-game losing streak back in April, the 2025 Brew Crew caught fire after a very slow first two months of the season. Kick-started by an eight-game winning streak that began in late May, the 2025 Brewers went from a 25-28 record on May 24, to an MLB-best 64-44 record when the trade deadline arrived.

Helping the Brewers along the way a year ago was midseason trade acquisition Andrew Vaughn, who was acquired from the Chicago White Sox in exchange for Aaron Civale on June 13. While Vaughn didn't debut with the team until July 7, following Rhys Hoskins' thumb injury, he proved to be a pivotal piece for the rest of the season. From his debut on July 7 until the end of the regular season, Vaughn slashed .308/.375/.493 with nine homers, 14 doubles, and 46 RBI in 64 games.

In large part due to Vaughn's emergence, as well as a surplus of veteran pitchers, the Brewers approached the 2025 trade deadline with few needs. As a result, Milwaukee's front office opted for a conservative approach leading up to the deadline, adding a backup catcher, a depth outfield piece, and a promising but injured reliever who ended up being unavailable during the postseason.

Brewers 2025 trade deadline moves:

1. Brewers acquire C Danny Jansen from Tampa Bay Rays for INF Jadher Areinamo

2. Brewers acquire OF Brandon Lockridge from San Diego Padres for LHP Nestor Cortes and INF Jorge Quintana

3. Brewers acquire RHP Shelby Miller and LHP Jordan Montgomery from Arizona Diamondbacks for cash considerations

What can the Milwaukee Brewers learn from last year's lackluster trade deadline?

Brewers fans didn't get the "big move" they were hoping for at the 2025 trade deadline, but the front office also didn't give up much in their quest to improve the margins of the first-place roster. Jansen started slow in August, but put together a strong final stretch and ended up posting 0.7 bWAR in 25 games with the Brewers last year. Meanwhile, infield prospect Jadher Areinamo has seemingly plateaued since joining the Rays' organization, as his strikeout rate has risen significantly and his walk rate has decreased. Seeing as Jansen didn't appear in a postseason game and Areinamo's future in the Rays' organization looks uncertain, the trade was essentially a wash.

Meanwhile, the abnormal trade with the D-Backs also looks rather underwhelming one year later. In fact, it looked underwhelming as early as one month after the 2025 trade deadline. Montgomery was out for the season and ended up not resigning with the Brewers in free agency, while Miller, the main prize of the deal, went down with a season-ending elbow injury in early September, meaning he too didn't appear in a playoff game. The Brewers took a financial hit as a result of the deal, but not a severe one, making this deal a "wash" as well.

Milwaukee has done well on paper thus far when it comes to the Lockridge deal with the Padres. Lockridge has compiled 0.8 bWAR in 48 games with the Brewers thus far, while Cortes posted 0.0 bWAR in six rough starts with the Padres last year, and Quintana has turned in a lackluster performance in High-A this year. However, Lockridge is essentially the Brewers' fifth-best outfield option right now and was a non-factor in the postseason last year.

All that to say, the Brewers' 2025 trade deadline was disappointing. Outside of the Vaughn deal, which few would consider a deadline trade, the Brewers didn't add any player at the trade deadline last year that ended up having a big impact on their postseason run. For a team with the best record in baseball at the time of the trade deadline, and an incredibly deep farm system, that's unacceptable.

So, what can the Brewers learn from last year's trade deadline, which did little to improve the club in the playoffs? The biggest lesson is that they should aim for higher upside additions that can help them dethrone the Los Angeles Dodgers in the postseason. They don't need any more depth pieces, with serviceable options throughout their organization who can fill in if needed. What the Brewers must instead prioritize are needle-movers -- players who can have a major impact on their chances in the postseason.

Milwaukee's most successful postseason run of their recent string of postseason appearances was the 2018 season, and it's no coincidence that it was also the team's most aggressive trade deadline. If the Brewers want to win the National League pennant in 2026, they can't afford another lackluster trade deadline.

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