This Brewer is expected to receive a significant raise for the 2026 season

Among the least fun parts of watching a baseball season end is figuring out how the heck a team owned by a multi-billionaire is going to afford all of its players next season.

The small-market Milwaukee Brewers are always among the most prominent teams in those discussions -- cue the perfectly timed Freddy Peralta trade rumors -- and this offseason promises to be no different.

One of the few constant sources of payroll increase in Milwaukee is with arbitration-eligible players, of whom the Brewers have many this year, including Jake Bauers, Andrew Vaughn, William Contreras, Nick Mears, Trevor Megill, Garrett Mitchell, Blake Perkins, and Brice Turang.

For payroll purposes, the most notable name on that list is Turang, who is eligible for arbitration for the first time in 2026. After receiving a scant $777,100 salary in 2025, MLB Trade Rumors projects the second baseman to earn $4.4 million via arbitration, one of the largest figures among the aforementioned crop of players.

Brice Turang's quickly growing salary could spell trouble for Brewers in future years

Turang has emerged as one of the best second basemen in baseball over the past few seasons, accruing 10.2 bWAR since the start of 2024. A lot of that is thanks to his brilliant defensive work -- he won the Gold Glove and Platinum Glove last year -- though he was a true force at the plate this season, batting .288/.359/.435 (124 wRC+) with 18 home runs and 24 stolen bases.

The issue isn't so much Turang's projected $4.4 million salary for 2026, but rather what it means going forward. Salaries tend to rise exponentially as players move through each year of arbitration so long as they stay healthy and continue to build off of their former seasons, which is why you might remember the Brewers fighting Corbin Burnes over $700,000 in arbitration when he was with the team.

It's not exactly one-to-one since Burnes was one of the best pitchers in the sport with the Brewers, but for reference, he made $6.5 million in his first go-round through arbitration. He then earned salaries of $10 million and $15.6 million in his final two years through the process.

That might not sound like a lot in the grand scheme of baseball, but the Brewers aren't in the business of paying players eight-figure salaries unless they've given the team no other choice. Turang would earn at least that much in his arb-3 year if he makes what MLBTR is projecting for him in 2026.

One way to avoid the arbitration process altogether is with a multi-year extension that guarantees a salary rather than leave a player’s paycheck up to negotiation each offseason. Players in Turang's position will often take a slight pay cut during their arbitration years for the benefit of adding more guaranteed years under contract to the end of their deal. Turang is certainly an extension candidate this offseason, which would not only allow the Brewers to avoid the arbitration process, but also delay the inevitable trade rumors that will surface after Turang's second season of arbitration eligibility in 2027.