The Milwaukee Brewers are the freshly crowned World Series champions for 2026. Add that trophy to a regular season body of work in which they won 103 games and achieved the best run differential in all of Major League Baseball, and it's clear the Brewers this season did all a team can do. The first title in franchise history will be remembered and cherished by the Brewers and their fans forever, and it was earned in every respect.
The celebrations won't soon end, and the post-Game 5 hangovers are still pulsing. Even so, it's time to turn our attention to the 2027 season and explore why the Brewers absolutely have the foundation necessary to do it all again next year. Here, then, are three reasons the Brewers can become repeat champions roughly one year from now.
Eyeball the Brewers' current contract obligations and service time tiers, and you'll find just six players are likely bound for free agency. Brandon Woodruff, Jake Bauers, JoJo Romero, and Gary Sánchez will be free agents soon. Elsewhere, Dustin May has a mutual option for 2027, which means he'll probably join them.
Finally, Antonio Senzatela has a $14 million team option for 2027 on which the Brewers may pass. Of those, the 31-year-old Bauers is the biggest needle-mover, as he's coming off a 2026 season in which he hit 26 home runs in 144 games and put up a WAR of 3.3. He does seem likely to move on, but the Brewers are more than resourceful enough to find comparable production from the non-premium position of first base.
Elsewhere, the Brewers should resist the temptation to trade away catcher, linchpin, and reigning World Series MVP William Contreras ahead of his walk year in 2027. The Brewers Way in recent years has been to part ways with core contributors around such a time, and that may be a temptation with Contreras, especially given Bo Naylor's presence on the roster. Contreras, though, is not easily replaceable given his skills behind the mask and his high level of production at the plate.
An extension may not be something the Brewers will pursue – even though the ongoing CBA negotiations will probably lead to a new system that benefits teams like Milwaukee – but even if that's the case, they should keep their catcher and leader around for the final year of team control in the name of defending the belt and the title. The champion Brewers, as a club that gets limited investment from ownership and is elite at player development, skews young even as they stand as the best team in baseball. Consider: As for specific examples, they're not hard to find.
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