The Milwaukee Brewers have filled their 40-man roster ahead of the 2025 MLB season. Their latest move, a trade for right-handed reliever Grant Anderson, and the subsequent designating for assignment of Tyler Jay, was the final piece of the puzzle. At least for now.
As Milwaukee prepares for Spring Training and the upcoming season, there are still some questions on the roster that need to be answered. One of these is in regard to the starting rotation and who will be in it. Last year’s initial starting rotation included Colin Rea, Joe Ross, Jakob Junis, and DL Hall. Rea, Ross, and Junis are all gone, and Hall is not guaranteed a starting job after struggling in that role as rookie, but performing well out of the bullpen.
Brandon Woodruff is expected to play a part in the starting rotation in 2025 after missing the better part of the last two seasons with injury, but may not be ready for Opening Day.
After using 17 different pitchers as starters/openers last year, many believe that the Brewers could use some more starting pitching depth.
The Milwaukee Brewers Are Urged to Sign LHP Jose Quintana
One of Milwaukee’s biggest moves of the offseason was trading two-time All-Star closer Devin Williams to the New York Yankees for left-handed pitcher Nestor Cortes and infield prospect Caleb Durbin. While it was Durbin who was the Brewers’ primary target due to the years of club control he still has, adding Cortes to their starting rotation was an added bonus.
But the fact of the matter is that Freddy Peralta and Cortes are the only two current Brewers pitchers who made 30 or more starts last season. Per Patrick McAvoy of Sports Illustrated, “That’s where former New York Mets starter José Quintana could come into play. He had a two-year, $26 million deal with the Mets but now is a free agent. He is a big reason why the Mets were able to surprise some people last year.”
Last season, Quintana was 10-10 with a 3.74 ERA and 1.25 WHIP in 31 starts for the New York Mets. He also has eight seasons in his career in which he made at least 30 starts.
There is also the fact that, in the past, Quintana has been a certified Brewers killer. Per Statmuse, he is 9-7 with a 2.98 ERA in 23 appearances against Milwaukee. After taking a loss to Milwaukee on May 10, 2019, he did not take another loss against them until September 28, 2022, a span of over three years and seven starts.
Of course, a signing of Quintana would depend heavily on what kind of contract he wants. Entering his age 36 season, he likely is not going to get a long-term deal. However, he is likely going to be asking for much more than Wade Miley, who has expressed interest in returning to Milwaukee himself, even on a minor league deal.
The bottom line is that the Brewers have spent just $1.35 million on free agents this offseason. It is hard to see them giving out $10 million or more to one free agent pitcher that is entering his age 36 season.
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