Whenever the risk of a lockout after the 2026 season is mentioned, people immediately point the finger at the Los Angeles Dodgers. Spending money like there’s no tomorrow. Deferral upon deferral. A team that the rest of MLB can’t—and doesn’t want to—emulate.
But if you look closer, the Dodgers aren’t the core problem. The Milwaukee Brewers are the most dangerous manifestation of the disease MLB is trying to avoid.
The Freddy Peralta trade is the clearest example.
Individually, it was a “logical” trade. The Brewers knew Peralta was just a rental. They acquired prospect. They preserved their long-term competitive cycle. From a management standpoint, there’s nothing wrong.
But the problem lies in the context.
The team that had the best MLB record last season, made the NLCS, and had the chance to rebuild an even stronger version—decided to trade their ace for fear of… losing a draft pick. Not because they were out of contention. It’s not because they’re failing. It’s because they’re afraid to take risks.
That’s the problem.
The Brewers have made the playoffs seven of the last eight years. That’s commendable for a small-market team. But look at the results: constant Wild Card exits, early NLDS crashes, only two NLCS appearances—and both times eliminated by the Dodgers.
You could say the Brewers are unlucky. You could say they’re up against the wrong opponents. But when this repeats itself for nearly a decade, it’s no longer an accident—it’s a pattern.
And that pattern always ends with a familiar action: trading star pitchers to free agencies.
Josh Hader. Corbin Burnes. Devin Williams. And now Freddy Peralta.
Four names. Four different teams still competing. And not a single trade has delivered a truly impactful replacement. There are some useful pieces, some interesting prospects, but none of the trades have made the Brewers stronger when they need it most.
The irony is: the Brewers are very good at one thing—developing pitching. Their current rotation is full of names with upside. But none of them are Freddy Peralta. And that matters.
Playoffs aren’t won with “decent” depth. They’re won with differentiating players.
The Brewers are constantly depriving themselves of such players for long-term safety—which gets them back to the playoffs the following year, only to lose again in the same old way.
And that’s where the Brewers become a bigger problem than the Dodgers.
The Dodgers spend money to win. They might lose, but they’re trying. The Brewers are different. They’re optimizing for… not losing too much. Making the playoffs consistently. Having postseason revenue. Never going all-in.
To the fans, the message is clear: “We want to be good enough, not the best.”
That very mindset is what’s pushing MLB to the brink of lockout. Not because of the teams’ spending power, but because too many teams lack the genuine motivation to win, yet still benefit from the money distribution, draft, and competitive balance systems.
The Dodgers didn’t “ruin baseball.” They simply exposed the uncomfortable truth: if you want to win, you have to take risks.
The Brewers don’t. And they’re not alone.
They can continue trading William Contreras, Trevor Megill, anyone whose contract is expiring. They’ll continue making the playoffs. And they’ll continue failing to win the championship.
The question is no longer whether the Brewers are doing things right in terms of management.
It’s: will fans accept a team that’s always “good enough” but never truly dares to dream big again?
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