With spring training just around the corner, the Milwaukee Brewers find themselves in a pretty intriguing spot. There are two open spots left on their 40-man roster, and that bit of flexibility gives President of Baseball Operations Matt Arnold and his front office some room to maneuver as they finalize the roster ahead of the 2026 season.
Now, those two roster spots don’t necessarily need to be used on external additions. One of them could easily go to veteran catcher Reese McGuire, who signed a minor league deal earlier this offseason.
If McGuire makes the Opening Day roster as the backup catcher - which seems likely - he’d need to be added to the 40-man. That still leaves one spot open, and if the Brewers want to make another addition or two, they’ve got ways to clear more space.
That brings us to the bullpen - specifically, the right-handed side of it. It’s no secret Milwaukee could use another reliable righty arm to round out the relief corps.
Sure, they’ve got internal options who could shift into bullpen roles, but adding one more proven right-hander would give new manager Pat Murphy more flexibility when it comes to late-game matchups. The problem?
The free-agent market is thin, and the Brewers are navigating some financial uncertainty following their new TV deal with Major League Baseball, which is expected to bring in less revenue than previous local broadcast agreements.
That makes a trade feel like the more realistic path. And if Milwaukee’s front office decides to go that route, the Miami Marlins should be one of the first teams they call.
Two Names to Watch: Calvin Faucher and Anthony Bender
The Marlins, now led by President of Baseball Operations Peter Bendix, have been active in reshaping their roster this offseason. They’ve already moved two arms - Edward Cabrera to the Cubs and Ryan Weathers to the Yankees - in deals that brought back promising young talent. If Bendix continues down that path, there are two bullpen arms in Miami that make a lot of sense for Milwaukee: Calvin Faucher and Anthony Bender.
Let’s break down why both could be strong fits in the Brewers' bullpen.
Calvin Faucher: Versatile, Under Control, and Brewers-Style Stuff
Faucher, a 30-year-old right-hander, is heading into his fifth MLB season, but because of limited service time early in his career, he’s under team control through the 2029 season. He also has one minor league option remaining - a detail that might seem small, but it’s something the Brewers value highly as they frequently shuffle arms between Triple-A and the big leagues.
But here’s the thing: Faucher’s performance suggests he’d be more than just a depth piece. Over the past two seasons, he’s logged 53+ appearances each year while keeping his ERA at or below 3.28. That’s solid on the surface, but the advanced metrics paint an even more encouraging picture.
Faucher leans on a five-pitch mix that keeps hitters off balance. He throws three different fastballs - a cutter, a four-seamer, and a sinker - and backs them up with a curveball and a sweeper.
That kind of pitch variety is right up the Brewers’ alley. In terms of Stuff+, which evaluates pitch quality based on velocity and movement, Faucher posted a 108 in 2025 - meaning his arsenal graded out 8% better than league average.
Among Brewers pitchers last year, only Trevor Megill, Aaron Ashby, Jacob Misiorowski, and Abner Uribe posted better Stuff+ numbers.
Financially, Faucher is still in the pre-arbitration phase and set to make just $775,000 in 2026. That’s a bargain, especially for a team trying to make every dollar count. And while acquiring him would cost some prospect capital, the price likely wouldn’t be steep - think along the lines of what Milwaukee gave up for Nick Mears at the 2024 trade deadline.
Anthony Bender: Sidearm Slider Machine with Elite Movement
If the Brewers want a different look in the bullpen, Bender brings it - literally. The 31-year-old righty throws from a 16-degree arm slot, giving hitters a completely different angle to deal with. And he’s coming off a stellar 2025 season, posting a 2.16 ERA over 51 appearances for Miami.
Bender’s bread and butter is a sweeping slider - or “frisbee sweeper” as it’s often called - which he throws nearly half the time. He pairs it with a 97 mph sinker, and the two pitches have a massive 35.2 inches of horizontal separation. That kind of movement is tough to square up, and it shows up in the metrics: Bender’s Stuff+ in 2025 came in at 115, making him one of the more deceptive arms available.
Beyond the sweeper and sinker, Bender also mixes in a tighter slider and an occasional changeup. He’s under team control for two more seasons and still has three minor league options left - again, a detail Milwaukee would appreciate.
His salary for 2026 is $2.81 million, which is manageable for the Brewers. And while he’s got fewer years of control than Faucher, he might actually be the more talented pitcher of the two. That said, the prospect cost might not differ all that much, given the balance between control and performance.
The Bottom Line
The Brewers have a roster spot to play with, and possibly more if they choose to clear space. They need another right-handed bullpen arm, and the trade route looks like the most realistic way to get it done. Calvin Faucher and Anthony Bender both check a lot of boxes: team control, pitch quality, affordability, and the kind of profiles Milwaukee tends to target.
Whether it’s Faucher’s versatile five-pitch mix or Bender’s nasty sidearm slider-sinker combo, either arm would give the Brewers a valuable weapon late in games. And with a deep farm system to deal from, Milwaukee has the resources to make a move - if they decide to pull the trigger.