Brewers add pitchers May, Senzatela, Romero in deals with Cards, Rox

MILWAUKEE – The Brewers reached the Trade Deadline with the best record in baseball for the second straight season. This time they also owned the National League’s best ERA. And front office officials intended to be aggressive at the Trade Deadline to stay there.

Did they succeed? Ask again in three months.

After falling short in the Tarik Skubal sweepstakes, the Brewers pivoted at Monday’s Deadline to acquire right-handed starter Dustin May and lefty reliever JoJo Romero from the Cardinals, then swung a second trade with the Rockies to land right-handed reliever Antonio Senzatela.

Two fast-rising outfield prospects are going back to St. Louis in the first swap: Alexander Frias (Brewers' No. 11 prospect, per MLB Pipeline) and Josiah Ragsdale (Brewers' No. 13).

Two other prospects outside of the Brewers’ Top 30, left-hander Mark Manfredi and shortstop Juan Martinez, were going to the Rockies in the second trade.

“I think we did what we can to help the team, and when you’re in on a lot of stuff, there’s some things where you come up short,” Brewers president of baseball operations Matt Arnold said. “You just have to pick yourself up and dust yourself off, and do what you can to get the next thing.

“Ultimately, I think we were able to accomplish a lot over the last 48 hours to get some stuff done to really help the team.”

Then the Brewers had to re-balance the 40-man roster, which required two more moves at the buzzer on Monday. They traded right-hander Codi Heuer, the reliever just acquired from Cleveland with catcher Bo Naylor in a depth move over the weekend, to the Orioles for cash. And they designated former two-time Minor League pitcher of the year Carlos Rodriguez for assignment.

TRADE DETAILS
Brewers receive: RHP Dustin May, LHP JoJo Romero
Cardinals receive: OF Alexander Frias (STL's No. 4 prospect), OF Josiah Ragsdale (No. 10 prospect)

TRADE DETAILS
Brewers receive: RHP Antonio Senzatela
Rockies receive: LHP Mark Manfredi, SS Juan Martinez

Those were prices Milwaukee officials were willing to pay to fortify a pitching staff with an especially young starting rotation anchored by ace right-hander Jacob Misiorowski, all of whom are approaching or have already passed their career innings limits. Adding another starter was critical to help manage those workloads.

And in Romero, who has been on the IL since undergoing an emergency appendectomy in mid-July but should be game-ready by the end of this month, and in Senzatela, the Brewers can add to their collection of experienced arms in the bullpen.

Postseason experience was also at a premium. Both May and Senzatela have October outings on their record.

“The guys that we got are pretty battle-tested, experienced guys,” Arnold said. “They’ve pitched in some big games and they’re tough. I think they’re going to fit in very well.”

All three pitchers were expected to join the Brewers by Tuesday, though Romero won’t be active for a few more weeks. Senzatela will come to the Brewers as a fresh arm, having last pitched for the Rockies on Friday. May will join the rotation and could start Thursday’s series finale against the Pirates, though that was tentative as of Monday night.

From the moment May signed a one-year deal with a mutual option with the Cardinals ahead of the 2026 season, the notion of a healthy four months in the starting rotation painted the 28-year-old as a prime trade candidate to a contender looking for a boost to its rotation.

May’s time in St. Louis got off to a rocky start, but after a pair of dud starts to open 2026, his next dozen starts produced a sterling 2.54 ERA. That stretch included a May 27 start against the Brewers in which he carried a no-hitter into the eighth inning, wound up striking out nine batters with no walks and only two runs (one earned run) -- and lost -- and a June 15 start against the Padres in which May threw a one-hit shutout.

But May’s checkered injury history has been put to the test on a couple of occasions in the summer, including in his subsequent rough start in Kansas City on June 21 in which he endured back tightness. Over his final seven Cardinals starts through last Wednesday, he had a 6.26 ERA.

“I overlapped a little bit with him in Boston, and he’s a great guy with great stuff,” said left-hander Kyle Harrison, another pitcher set to join Milwaukee’s rotation this week, probably Wednesday, after a stint on the IL for a forearm injury. “It’s just wicked sweepers, wicked sinker [with] arm side movement, changeups that fall off the table. He’s a fun guy to bounce ideas off of, and his stuff is nasty.”

Since arriving in St. Louis from Philadelphia in a trade for Edmundo Sosa in 2022, Romero has been a late-game relief mainstay for the Cardinals from the left side. Romero has experience handling the toughest lefty lanes an opposing lineup can provide and has compiled ERAs below 3.40 in each of his last three seasons. Romero jumped on the radar as one of the game’s top lefty setup men in 2025, when he posted a 2.07 ERA in 61 innings.

Romero has been on the 15-day IL since July 17, but he played catch last week and should be ready to pitch for the Brewers by the end of this month, a source said. The Cardinals had not yet offered a firm timeline for his return to baseball activities, but Romero has been seen at the ballpark and around the team as he moves toward a return to the mound.

Senzatela is a 10-year Major League veteran with the Rockies who was mostly a starter before converting to full-time relief this season. He had a 3.61 ERA in 34 appearances this season spanning 52 1/3 innings, meaning he’s the sort of multi-inning arm the Brewers often covet.

There’s a chance all of Monday’s acquisitions are rentals. May is earning $12.5 million this season and has a $20 million mutual option for 2027 with a $500,000 buyout. Romero is earning $4.26 million and is a free agent at season’s end. Senzatela is earning $12 million in the final season of a five-year, $50.5 million contract and has a $14 million club option for 2027 with no buyout.

“We need guys to throw,” Harrison said. “Over the full 162, we need arms.”