MILWAUKEE -- Now that the offseason is underway, the Brewers face their first decisions: contract options.
Longtime ace Brandon Woodruff, whose 2017 Major League debut makes him the longest-tenured member of the team, headlines the list of players with an option that must be decided by Thursday (within five days of the conclusion of the World Series). Here’s a rundown of the decisions and how they could play out.
RHP Brandon Woodruff
($20 million mutual option, $10 million buyout)
The option represents the final piece of the two-year, $17.5 million contract that Woodruff signed in February 2024. It paid $2.5 million in ‘24 while he rehabbed from right shoulder surgery and $5 million in '25, when Woodruff returned in early July and, despite diminished velocity, pitched his way to a 7-2 record and a 3.20 ERA in 12 starts before a right lat strain ended his season in late September and cost him the chance to pitch in the postseason. He is expected to be ready for the start of Spring Training and said he expects to pitch a full, healthy ‘26.
Before the injury, it was a near-certainty that Woodruff would decline the option, take his $10 million (to be paid in two equal installments on Jan. 15 and July 15) and seek a multiyear deal as a free agent. Even after the injury, that still seems the most likely outcome. If he or the Brewers decline their half of the option, Woodruff would become a free agent, heading toward his age-33 season.
If that’s the case, the Brewers would face the secondary decision of whether to extend a qualifying offer ($22.025 million for 2026), banking on Woodruff declining and eventually netting Milwaukee a compensatory Draft pick. There’s more on that process here.
Yes, that means there’s the risk of Woodruff accepting and costing the Brewers north of $32 million next season. But the way teams handle accounting for buyouts, that portion of the payroll is already baked in, and it should be viewed separately from his 2026 salary. It’s a fascinating multilayered situation.
1B Rhys Hoskins
($18 million mutual option, $4 million buyout)
When the Brewers signed Hoskins to a two-year, $34 million deal in January 2024 as he was coming off left knee surgery, they hoped he’d add a jolt of power to the lineup. He did -- to a point. Hoskins played in 221 games for the Brewers over the past two seasons and hit 38 home runs, trailing only Jackson Chourio (42), William Contreras (40) and Christian Yelich (40) in that span. But Hoskins injured the thumb on his left (glove) hand while making a tag in early July and lost the first-base job to Andrew Vaughn, returning to a bench role in September before being left off the roster for both rounds of the postseason. Hoskins was a pro about it, but there is zero chance of both sides exercising the option for him to return.
“It’s a bad end, but I don’t think it sours the rest of my time here,” Hoskins said. “I’ll cherish my couple of years here. I got a chance, after missing a full year due to injury, to continue my career. That’s something I’ll never forget.”
LHP Jose Quintana
($15 million mutual option, $2 million buyout)
Like Hoskins, Quintana’s Brewers tenure didn’t end the way anyone had hoped. Signed to a one-year deal with an option during Spring Training, Quintana debuted with seven scoreless innings at Arizona on April 11 and went 11-7 with a 3.96 ERA in 131 2/3 innings, trailing only Freddy Peralta (176 2/3 frames) and Quinn Priester (157 1/3) on the team despite being sidelined for the final two weeks of the regular season by a left calf injury. His final appearance was ugly: a two-inning, six-hit, three-run start against Shohei Ohtani and the Dodgers in Game 4 of the National League Championship Series that began with the first of Ohtani’s three home runs in the Brewers’ season-ending loss. Quintana will be 37 in January, and Milwaukee will decline its side of the option.
C William Contreras
($12 million club option, $100,000 buyout)
Contreras will be Milwaukee’s starting catcher again in 2026 unless another team makes a trade offer too good to turn down for the 27-year-old two-time All-Star. But first there is some business to tend to.
While avoiding arbitration last year with a one-year, $6.1 million deal, Contreras agreed to a $12 million club option for 2026. The Brewers can either pick it up and set Contreras’ salary, or they can decline, tender him a new contract in a couple of weeks and then go through the arbitration process to set his price for next season. The decision depends on whether Milwaukee believes Contreras will earn more or less than $12 million if he goes through the usual arbitration system.
C Danny Jansen
($12 million mutual option, $500,000 buyout)
The Brewers upgraded their backup catcher situation by adding Jansen at the Trade Deadline, and he delivered 0.7 bWAR in 25 games and 78 plate appearances compared to Eric Haase’s 0.2 bWAR in 30 games and 77 plate appearances to start the season. But there’s no chance that Jansen will return for the price he would cost. Rather, the Brewers probably will go into next season with top catching prospect Jeferson Quero (Milwaukee’s No. 4 prospect, No. 84 overall in MLB) as Contreras’ backup and pupil.
RHP Freddy Peralta
($8 million club option, no buyout)
The easiest decision all winter will be to pick up Peralta’s option at $8 million, an absolute bargain for a pitcher and team leader who went 17-6 with a 2.70 ERA in a team-leading 33 starts. This is the final element of the club-friendly contract Peralta signed as a 23-year-old in February 2020, knowing he was trading potential future earnings for life-changing financial security for his family.
The hardest decision is deciding what to do next. With Peralta due to hit free agency following the 2026 season, the Brewers must decide whether to follow the Willy Adames model and keep him through the end of his deal, or follow the Corbin Burnes and Devin Williams model and trade him this winter for controllable talent.