This player is the Milwaukee Brewers' X-factor heading into the 2026 season

Every baseball season brings surprise contributions from players who outperform expectations. For the Milwaukee Brewers, those boosts have often come from external additions acquired via trade during the season.

In 2021, Milwaukee found its rhythm after trading for shortstop Willy Adames, who delivered countless clutch hits and home runs that season and remained a key contributor in the years that followed. The trend continued in 2023, when trade deadline additions Mark Canha and Carlos Santana provided steady production and helped the Brewers cruise to a division title by nine games.

Most recently, that pattern held true again last season, as Quinn Priester proved to be a significant pickup in April. Andrew Vaughn went on a historic run after being called upon in July following Rhys Hoskins’ thumb injury, and rode that momentum through the postseason.

Building on that, Vaughn is slated to be the Brewers’ everyday first baseman in 2026. This off-season, Milwaukee signaled their confidence in him by avoiding arbitration and signing him to a $7.65 million deal. Given the potential and inconsistency Vaughn flashed a year ago, he looms as a major X-factor in determining the team’s success this season, but if he falters, it could spell trouble for the Brew Crew.

Andrew Vaughn is the Milwaukee Brewers' X-factor heading into the 2026 season

Outside of Vaughn, the Brewers’ current 40-man roster includes first basemen Jake Bauers and Tyler Black, with Andruw Monasterio also capable of filling in after appearing in 15 games at the position last season. Beyond those options, top prospects such as Andrew Fischer, Luke Adams, Eric Bitonti, and Blake Burke are unlikely to be big-league ready in 2026, with Burke and Adams having finished the 2025 season in Double-A.

Along with being a major X-factor for the 2026 season, this situation makes Vaughn’s performance especially critical. The Brewers are counting on him to sustain the high level of production he showed last year, and if he fails to do so, Milwaukee could find itself scrambling for answers at first base.

One important factor to consider is that Vaughn has historically been a slow starter. Over his career, he owns a .218/.297/.351 slash line in March and April, followed by a .239/.287/.422 line in May, with his production typically not turning a corner until June.

A slow start with the Chicago White Sox last season led to a demotion to the minors and ultimately a trade to the Brewers. With Milwaukee counting on his production, it’s imperative that he bucks that trend this year and establishes himself as a dependable X-factor in the lineup from the onset.