The Brewers have already dipped into the pitching market once, and they still may not be done.
Milwaukee made a surprise All-Star break deal with the Astros that brought in right-hander Lance McCullers Jr. and left-hander Colton Gordon, a move that cost the club outfield prospect Jadyn Fielder. Even after that three-player swap, the front office appears likely to keep looking for another arm before the deadline, with the rotation still needing someone reliable enough to handle a potential No. 3 starter role in a postseason series.
Logan Henderson has shown he can flash that kind of upside, but he has not gone beyond six innings in a start this season and still has limited major league experience. For a Brewers team that usually prefers value over splash, that points toward a cheaper addition rather than a headline-grabbing chase.
One name that fits the bill is Washington Nationals left-hander Foster Griffin.
Griffin, 30, has turned in a breakout MLB season after spending the previous three years with the Yomiuri Giants in Japan’s Nippon Professional Baseball. Over that stretch overseas, he went 18-10 with a 2.57 ERA across 315.2 innings, and he has carried that momentum back to the majors.
In 20 starts this season, Griffin has posted a 2.68 ERA and paired it with standout command. He has attacked the zone all year and has walked only 5.7% of the batters he has faced.
His cutter has been his best pitch, holding opponents to a .203 average, but the rest of the mix has also played. His four-seam fastball, sweeper, changeup, curveball, and sinker have all been effective, giving him a deep arsenal that works even without premium velocity.
That profile makes him an appealing rental for a contender. Griffin signed a one-year, $5.5 million deal with Washington last winter, so the price tag is manageable for a team trying to add rotation help without emptying the farm.
Washington is still in the National League Wild Card race, but The Athletic’s Ken Rosenthal and Will Sammon recently called a Griffin trade "inevitable." If that happens, Milwaukee should be right there among the clubs pushing hardest to land him. His production, affordability, and low profile around the league could make him exactly the kind of deadline move the Brewers like to make.
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Shewmake, who arrived from the Houston Astros before the All-Star break, got a brief look with the Brewers and showed the sort of versatility teams value when injuries start to stack up. If he gets through waivers, Milwaukee could keep him in the organization by sending him to Triple-A, a possibility that would leave the front office with one more layer of depth as it weighs deadline moves and eventual returns from the injured list. [Read more 🡒]
Trevor Megill Had The Perfect Response To Brewers Trade Buzz
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For Trevor Megill, none of that appears to be rattling the day-to-day job. He has settled in as Milwaukees clear-cut closer after Abner Uribe briefly handled the role earlier this season, and his focus remains on the ninth inning rather than the rumor mill. Still, with the Brewers likely to make bullpen changes before the deadline passes, Megill knows a new face could be walking into the clubhouse soon enough. [Read more 🡒]
Brewers Are Circling Detroits Ace And Tigers Fans Know What That Means
The Brewers are already being linked to a more aggressive posture for the 2026 trade deadline, and the early buzz says they are not waiting around to see how the market develops. Milwaukee has talked with Detroit and San Diego about pitching help, a sign the front office is at least exploring the kind of swing that can change a postseason race rather than just patch a hole.
Tarik Skubal sits at the center of the conversation because a pitcher of his caliber would instantly reshape a rotation that has been thinned by injuries. Detroit would not move an arm like that cheaply, and the asking price figures to start with controllable starting pitching plus more beyond it, which is why this feels less like a rumor mill item and more like the beginning of a real test for Milwaukees willingness to pay up. [Read more 🡒]