After a rocky 2025 at the plate, Joey Ortiz’s grip on the Brewers’ starting shortstop job looked anything but secure. The calls for an upgrade were loud and persistent this offseason, and for good reason - shortstop stood out as the most obvious spot on the roster where Milwaukee could use a boost.
Fans wanted action, whether it came through free agency or a trade. But as the offseason unfolded, it became clear that the solution wasn’t going to be that simple.
Let’s start with the market itself. This year’s crop of free-agent shortstops was thin - and that’s putting it kindly.
Add in the Brewers’ well-documented payroll limitations, and the odds of them landing a top-tier name were already slim. But the bigger picture reveals why the front office, led by Matt Arnold, chose to stand pat.
Milwaukee isn’t just thinking about 2026 - they’re thinking long-term. The organization is flush with middle infield talent climbing the ladder.
Cooper Pratt, Jesús Made, and Luis Peña - the top three prospects in the system per MLB Pipeline - are all projected to reach the majors by 2028, and possibly sooner. Based on their current trajectories, it wouldn’t be surprising to see at least two of them in a Brewers uniform before the end of 2027.
That kind of pipeline changes the calculus. The Brewers weren’t just looking for a shortstop - they were looking for a very specific kind of shortstop: someone clearly better than Ortiz, but also willing to sign a short-term deal.
Two years, max. And in this market, there was really only one name that checked those boxes: Ha-Seong Kim.
When healthy, Kim has been a rock-solid contributor. In 2022 and 2023, he posted back-to-back seasons of 5.0+ bWAR, showing elite defense and enough offense to be a difference-maker.
Coming off an injury-riddled 2025, he was reportedly seeking a short-term “prove-it” deal - the kind of contract Milwaukee typically targets. If the Brewers were going to make a splash, Kim would have made sense.
But that hypothetical never materialized, and in hindsight, that might’ve been a blessing.
Kim recently underwent surgery on his right middle finger after suffering a tendon tear from a fall on ice while in Korea. He’s now expected to miss at least 4-5 months, which likely rules him out for the start of the season. Realistically, he might not be fully back until well into the summer, especially after missing all of Spring Training.
Had Milwaukee committed $20 million to Kim - roughly one-sixth of their entire payroll - this injury would’ve been a gut punch. Instead, the Brewers avoided the risk and doubled down on Ortiz, who is not only far more affordable but may also be more productive in 2026.
That’s not just optimism talking. FanGraphs’ projections have Ortiz slightly ahead of Kim in expected WAR for the upcoming season - 2.5 for Ortiz versus 2.4 for Kim.
That’s not a massive difference, but it’s telling. Even before Kim’s injury, the margin between the two wasn’t significant enough to justify a major financial commitment.
Now, with Kim sidelined for months, the decision to stick with Ortiz looks even smarter.
And make no mistake - the Brewers are backing their guy. MLB.com’s Adam McCalvy reported in December that there were “no indications” Milwaukee was planning to make a change at shortstop.
That confidence seems rooted not just in necessity, but in belief. Ortiz is entering his third season and still has room to grow.
While his 2025 campaign didn’t turn heads, the organization clearly sees potential.
The reality is, replacing Ortiz with a clear upgrade wasn’t just hard - it was practically impossible given the constraints. Even Kim, arguably the best available option, came with risk and uncertainty. And now, with that risk realized, the Brewers’ decision to stay the course looks less like a fallback and more like a calculated bet on development, depth, and internal growth.
Ortiz may not be the flashiest name at shortstop heading into 2026, but given the context - the market, the payroll, the prospect timeline - he might just be the right one.