The overlooked downside of the Brewers’ Caleb Durbin trade with Red Sox

Because the Milwaukee Brewers so frequently win trades of this ilk, it's fair to sort of just assume that they'll come out on top of their recent blockbuster with the Boston Red Sox, no matter what the pundits or analysts say.

But, it's worth keeping in mind that it wasn't "just" a six-player trade. Yes, Caleb Durbin, Andruw Monasterio, and Anthony Seigler are being shipped to Boston in exchange for Kyle Harrison, Shane Drohan, and David Hamilton, but the Brewers also forked over an extra asset: a Competitive Balance Round B draft pick.

In all sincerity, that's a really valuable piece, especially since the pick falls at No. 67 overall in the 2026 MLB Draft order (it could become the 68th overall pick depending on where Zac Gallen ends up signing this winter). The Crew are no strangers to unloading draft picks for win-now talent — they did the exact same thing last year in the Quinn Priester trade everyone also initially thought they lost — but the ramifications go deeper than just losing one extra dart throw during the selection process.

Brewers surrender No. 67 overall draft pick and lose signing bonus money associated with it

Last year, pick No. 67 (then the first pick in Competitive Balance Round B) was awarded a slot value of $1.285 million. With slight inflation that happens every year, that pick will probably come with an associated $1.3 million in signing bonus money.

As a reminder, every pick in the MLB draft has a slot value associated with it. Teams add up all of their slot values before the draft and get their "bonus pool," which is what they have to work with (and up to 5% over it) when trying to sign their draft picks. While losing an extra bite at the apple hurts, it's that money that will really hurt Milwaukee's draft strategy. Any hopes of going under-slot on a few guys early and using those savings to sign over-slot players who slid for one reason or another will be far more difficult to realize without that roughly $1.3 million.

Of course, the flip side of the argument is that the Brewers are using an additional asset that was awarded to them for being a small-market club to further their chances in the immediate future -- though Harrison and Drohan will both hopefully impact the big-league club for years to come. In a small way, it's the aggressive form of team building that many fans have been calling for during this period of success in Milwaukee.

With that pick now in the Red Sox's hands, the Brewers will have just two picks in the top 100 in this year's MLB Draft: Nos. 25 and 66 (or 67) overall.