Milwaukee Brewers face tough decisions on 2 All-Star pitchers

As the season went on, Peralta emerged as one of the best pitchers in the National League. He is currently 16-5 with a 2.50 ERA and made his second career All-Star team this year. His 16 wins are the most in all Major League Baseball, as are his 29 games started.

He also has a streak of 28 consecutive innings without allowing a run, and could break the franchise record in his next start.

Fortunately for Milwaukee, Peralta has an $8 million team option for next season, which will be the final year of his contract. The way he is pitching, the two-time All-Star will undoubtedly finish in the top-three for NL Cy Young, making that $8 million salary an absolute steal.

But what about after 2026? Peralta has expressed interest in staying in Milwaukee with another contract extension, but the team has not yet engaged in any negotiations, at least none that have been reported.

One should expect that when/if Peralta hits free agency, he will be one of the most in-demand players on the market. He could easily get a multi-year contract worth $150-$200 million, and the Brewers simply cannot (or will not) pay that.

With that being said, the Brewers must decide if they will trade Peralta during the offseason for prospects as they did Corbin Burnes, or if they will allow him to finish up his time in Milwaukee before becoming a free agent as they did Willy Adames.

A more pressing question, too, is what the future of two-time All-Star Brandon Woodruff is going to be in Milwaukee too. He is currently 6-2 with a 3.32 ERA in 11 starts this season after missing nearly two full years with a shoulder injury.

Woodruff is dominant on the mound and easily one of the best pitchers on the team. But he has a $20 million mutual option for 2026, and every Brewers fan knows the organization will not pick up their end of that.

The question, then, becomes will they be able to re-sign him for a price that both sides find fair. Woodruff loves Milwaukee and likely feels a strong sense of loyalty to the team for sticking with him through his injury and recovery.

Both Peralta and Woodruff project to be key figures in the Brewers’ postseason rotation too, meaning that losing one or both of them would drastically change what the team will look like next year when/if they reach the playoffs again.

Ideally, Milwaukee would bring both back. But that is not likely to happen.