5 questions the Crew needs to answer for 2020

5 questions the Crew needs to answer for 2020

November 1st, 2019

MILWAUKEE -- With the World Series in the books and Hot Stove season off and running, here are five pressing questions for the Brewers this winter:

1. How different will the club look come Spring Training?
was a notable addition last winter, but the Brewers largely returned the same team in 2019 that played to within a game of the World Series the year before. This offseason figures to be different.

Grandal and infielder declined their 2020 mutual options Friday and became free agents, along with starters and and relievers , and . Grandal and Moustakas were All-Stars, and the pitchers were all significant contributors at different points of 2019, particularly Lyles and Pomeranz after arriving via Trade Deadline deals.

• The latest Grandal rumors

Then there is a long list of arbitration-eligible players that already was reduced by one when the Brewers outrighted from the 40-man roster and he elected free agency. Among the decisions still to make: Do the Brewers invest to bring back third baseman after his down year? And do they continue to invest in as he works back from shoulder surgery? Both have pretty deep roots in Milwaukee at this point.

2. Will any of those free agents be back?
Brewers president of baseball operations David Stearns was surprisingly forthright about his interest in bringing back Grandal and/or Moustakas. Both landed with the Brewers on one-year deals after free agency didn’t supply a multiyear offer to their liking, and while it’s possible that the same thing will happen again, it would not be surprising to see a team pony up for either player.

By FanGraphs' version of Wins Above Replacement, Grandal's 5.2 mark made him baseball’s second-most valuable catcher behind the Phillies' J.T. Realmuto (5.7). And Moustakas is coming off a 35-homer season, three shy of his career best, and a 114 OPS+. Both will be in their age-31 seasons next year. Lyles and Pomeranz are also interesting cases. Would the Brewers go multiple years for pitchers who appeared to unlock something after last summer’s trades? The Brewers won 10 of Lyles’ 11 starts, while the right-hander used a high fastball, low curveball combo to log a 2.45 ERA. Pomeranz thrived as a reliever, with a 45% strikeout rate.

3. What will the starting rotation look like next season?
Brandon Woodruff is a lock. Adrian Houser gained confidence as last season went along and finished with a 3.72 ERA in 35 games, including 18 starts. Zach Davies is arbitration eligible after going 10-7 with a 3.55 ERA in 31 starts and appears worth the investment. After that, things get nebulous.

• Who takes the mound for Brewers in '20?

The Brewers hold an $8.5 million option on Chase Anderson, who posted a 4.21 ERA in 139 innings. Brent Suter is healthy again, but he was so excellent as a multi-inning reliever in September and in the National League Wild Card Game that there is at least a discussion to be had. Freddy Peralta also appeared to find a comfort zone in relief. And the biggest internal question of all is whether Corbin Burnes can bounce back. He has the stuff to be a Major League starter, but he didn’t cut it when offered the opportunity this season.

There is room here for Stearns to acquire a starting pitcher or two -- or more -- via trade or free agency, depending on how much he is willing to spend.

4. Who’s on third?
Third base is the Brewers’ most uncertain position, with Moustakas a free agent and Shaw coming off a nightmare season in which he slipped from 30-plus home runs in each of his first two years in Milwaukee to a .157/.281/.270 slash line and multiple trips to the Minor Leagues. The Brewers face a decision there, with Shaw eligible for arbitration coming off a $4.675 million salary.

5. What’s the situation in the outfield?
Basically, it’s the same. in left field, in center and . But there’s a lot going on there. Braun will be entering the final guaranteed year of his contract in 2020 and -- stop us if you’ve heard this before -- might be an option to get some at-bats at first base. The Brewers have an affordable primary option at that position in , who hits left-handed. With Jesus Aguilar traded to Tampa Bay, Braun is one candidate to be the right-handed half of that platoon, though that idea has been bandied about before, and it hasn’t happened aside from a handful of games at the start of 2018.

Cain will be 34 in April and looking to bounce back from a 2019 season in which his body hurt most of the year, including a thumb issue that required cryotherapy and knee and ankle injuries late. As Braun can attest, avoiding those physical ailments gets more difficult with time.

Yelich, meanwhile, will be coming back from the fractured kneecap that ended his season early. The Brewers anticipate he will be 100% in plenty of time for Spring Training. And now the team has a couple of solid backups in and . The outfield is shaping into one of the Brewers’ strengths.