Even as the Milwaukee Brewers have downplayed potential trade bait Freddy Peralta, there is reportedly growing interest among several contenders around the league.
The 29-year-old ace pitched a 3.30 ERA over the past five seasons, including a career-best 2.70 ERA in 2025, collecting enough votes to finish fifth in the NL Cy Young race, the first time he’s ever received a single vote. Over his eight-year career, Peralta made 211 appearances (162 starts) with a 3.59 ERA, 3.66 FIP and 1,153 strikeouts in 931 innings.
Entering the final season of his contract extension, Peralta will make just $8 million this year, quite a bargain for a top player like himself. Additionally, Peralta would likely net any team an additional first-round pick, as he will almost certainly be offered (and rejected) a qualifying offer next season.
The Brewers have a recent history of trading players before the end of their contracts, including a midseason trade of Josh Hader in 2022 and offseason trades of Corbin Burnes and Devin Williams in each of the past two winters. However, they held on to franchise cornerstone Willy Adames until the end of his contract in 2024, when he signed with the Giants last December.
In terms of roster, Peralta would clearly fit at the top of any team’s rotation, and there is no such thing as too many pitchers. Just ask the Brewers, who currently have 13 realistic rotation options. You could also ask the Braves, who lost seemingly every pitcher to injury in what turned out to be a dismal 2025, missing the playoffs for the first time since 2017.
Rosenthal added that he expects the Brewers to trade Peralta, and he expects a return to be greater than what they got for Burnes in 2024. As a refresher, that deal netted Brewers pitcher DL Hall and infielder Joey Ortiz, who came in as their No. 5 prospect that season (Hall had already graduated to rookie status prior to the trade, though he was ranked as Baltimore’s No. 7 prospect – just ahead of Ortiz at No. 1). 8 — in 2023).
With that in mind, I would expect Milwaukee’s asking price to be very high, especially if they look to keep Peralta. If the price is right, it should be something close to a back-end top 100 prospect paired with an established Major Leaguer (albeit with more contract headroom). There could also be draft compensation, as any draft pick associated with a Peralta QO would go to his new team.
Have your thoughts changed about a Peralta transaction? Weigh in in the comments!
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