Even after the Dodgers landed Tarik Skubal, Pat Murphy wasn’t interested in letting the narrative drift one way.
The Milwaukee manager made it clear Saturday’s blockbuster was not a case of his club sitting on its hands. In his view, the Brewers were in the hunt, and the idea that they never made a real push is flat-out wrong.
“It isn’t as simple as, ‘That’s a better package.’ It’s not as simple as that,” Murphy told reporters.
“There’s a lot more, a lot more layers to it. To say the Brewers didn’t try is simply incorrect.”
The Dodgers ultimately won the sweepstakes, sending outfield prospect Zyhir Hope and right-handed pitching prospects River Ryan and Brady Smith to Detroit for the left-hander. Ahead of the deal, The Athletic’s Ken Rosenthal reported that Milwaukee was one of several clubs expected to be involved, along with the Tampa Bay Rays, New York Yankees and Atlanta Braves.
For a Brewers team with an estimated $136.6 million payroll - 19th in MLB, per Cot’s Contracts - the willingness was there to take on the rest of Skubal’s 2026 salary, which Rosenthal pegged at $9.6 million. The Dodgers, meanwhile, paid with premium prospect capital from a farm system that was described as top-rated, including two players ranked in Keith Law’s Top 70.
“There’s nothing that we did that no one else couldn’t have done,” Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said Sunday.
Skubal echoed that sentiment in his first comments with reporters Monday.
“Every team could trade for me,” Skubal said. “I don’t sympathize with people that blame the Dodgers for anything they’ve done. It’s a winning org.”
Murphy’s pushback fits the way Milwaukee has generally operated. The Brewers have historically been cautious about moving prospect capital the way clubs such as the Dodgers, Yankees and Red Sox often do. The 2008 deadline pickup of CC Sabathia and the 2018 offseason trade for Christian Yelich stand out as exceptions.
Milwaukee did make other moves to strengthen the roster at the deadline. On Monday, the Brewers landed pitchers Dustin May and JoJo Romero from the St.
Louis Cardinals and added right-hander Antonio Senzatela from the Colorado Rockies. They also acquired catcher Bo Naylor and right-hander Codi Heuer from the Cleveland Guardians, though both were optioned to Triple A.
Importantly for Milwaukee, none of those deals cost the club any of Law’s Top 20 prospects. Class-A outfielder Alexander Frías and Double-A outfielder Josiah Ragsdale, the return for May and Romero, are viewed as top 30 prospects by other outlets, while lefty Mark Manfredi and shortstop Juan Martinez did not appear on major lists.
The Brewers entered Monday at 69-42, owning the best record in baseball by a half-game over the Dodgers, who were 69-43. That’s familiar territory for Milwaukee, which finished last season with the league’s best record before falling to Los Angeles in the National League Championship Series.
If the standings hold, the path looks like it could lead back to the same October stage. For the Brewers and Dodgers, a rematch would mark their third meeting since 2018.
In Other News...
Brandon Sproat Just Put His Brewers Role In Real Jeopardy
Brandon Sproats night turned rough in a hurry, and the Brewers were left trying to dig out of a hole before they ever got a real chance to settle in. Sproat allowed multiple runs and had trouble finding the strike zone, forcing Milwaukee to turn the game over to Garrett Stallings, who steadied things with three scoreless innings and gave the lineup a chance to rally.
The Brewers did push back with some scoring in the fifth and sixth innings, but the deficit Sproat created was too much to erase. More than the loss itself, the outing raised a bigger question for Milwaukee: a pitcher trying to carve out a role in a crowded staff cant afford nights like this, and Sproats place in the rotation and even on the roster may now be in real doubt. [Read more 🡒]
Brewers Rotation Squeeze May Force A Tough Connor Sproat Decision
The Brewers pitching depth has suddenly become a lot less theoretical. After acquiring Dustin May and with Kyle Harrison expected back from the injured list, Milwaukee is looking at a rotation logjam that would be a good problem to have if not for the fact that there are only so many starts to go around. Connor Sproat is right in the middle of that squeeze, and his latest outing only sharpened the conversation about where he fits.
In his recent start, Sproat gave up four runs in three-plus innings, a rough line at a time when the Brewers are trying to sort out their long-term mix on the mound. Pat Murphy and the teams decision-makers are expected to meet with Sproat soon to talk through the next steps, and the discussion figures to be as much about opportunity as it is about performance. For a club trying to balance immediate needs with keeping its arms lined up, this is the kind of choice that can shape the rest of the pitching plan. [Read more 🡒]
Brewers Pushed Hard For Tarik Skubal But Still Lost Out
The Brewers spent real energy trying to land Tarik Skubal, making a strong push with a three-prospect offer in hopes of bringing the Detroit ace to Milwaukee. Instead, the Dodgers came in with a package that Detroit preferred, and the trade moved on without the Brewers, a reminder of how quickly the market can turn when a premium pitcher is available.
Brewers officials did not hide their disappointment, though they also treated the negotiations as the kind of complicated process that often stays partially behind closed doors. Manager Pat Murphy and president of baseball operations Matt Arnold both underscored how aggressively the club went after Skubal, a sign the Brewers were willing to make a meaningful swing even if the final cost never became public. [Read more 🡒]