Milwaukee Brewers: 13 Big Questions that Remain Unanswered

As we look ahead to the Milwaukee Brewers 2020 season, these are 13 big questions that remain unanswered.

The Milwaukee Brewers, along with every other MLB team, were well into their Spring Training schedule before the season was ultimately put on hold due to the coronavirus outbreak.

However, prior to that point we had seen some encouraging performances from some players that we hopefully see step up this season. But with it being such a small sample size there are still quite a few questions about those specific players, and in general, this Brewers team that need to be answered.

Milwaukee, of course, went through a bit of an unconventional offseason for a team that is coming off of two straight postseason appearances, including an NLCS trip in 2018. Instead of adding a key player or two, GM David Stearns has been conducting a mini-rebuild on the fly and has signed several players to low-risk deals but they are players that come with a lot of unknowns as well.

Although we got a sneak peek with some Spring Training action, there is still plenty of uncertainty surrounding this 2020 Brewers team as evidenced by many of the preseason projections. So before the season begins – whenever that might be – here are my 13 big questions that I have about this Milwaukee Brewers team.

How will Ryan Braun fare at 1B?

Ryan Braun will see some time in the outfield but he will also be spending a lot of time platooning at first base with Justin Smoak. Brauny spent 109.1 innings at first base during the beginning of the 2018 season where he was a below-average fielder by DRS with -2 runs saved. At this point we pretty much know what we can expect from him at the plate, but what will we see from him defensively at first base?

Can Orlando Arcia keep playing well?

With the acquisition of Luis Urias, Orland Arcia is on the hot-seat. However, with Urias missing Spring Training with a wrist injury, Arcia had plenty of opportunities at the plate and he did not disappoint. In 27 plate appearances, he was slashing .296/.310/.926 and it appears that Arcia had also made some changes to his batting stance and swing.

So is this just another hot streak for Arcia that will eventually turn cold? Or did he find something with his new approach at the plate? If it’s the former, we can expect to see Urias much sooner than later.

Can Corbin Burnes bounce-back?

Another potential bounce-back candidate, Corbin Burnes was pitching quite well in Spring Training after an abysmal 2019 campaign. In 10 innings, Burnes held a 0.90 ERA, while striking out 13 and allowing just one earned run. Armed with a new mental approach and a plan to build his pitching arsenal around his slider, will we see a resurgence from Burnes in 2020?

What can we expect from the starting rotation?

Outside of Brandon Woodruff, this rotation just has a lot of unknowns. Will Adrian Houser continue to develop? Can Brett Anderson stay healthy? How will Josh Lindblom adjust to life back in the Major Leagues? And who will be the fifth member of the rotation? Many expected it to be Eric Lauer, but he was injured in early March and Burnes along with Freddy Peralta will be pushing him for meaningful innings.

What about the bullpen?

This is a Milwaukee Brewers team that relies heavily on their bullpen under manager Craig Counsell with their starting rotation rarely going through the batting order a third time. However, even with all of their moves this offseason, the bullpen remained relatively untouched.

Of course, they have Josh Hader and we know what he is capable of. We hope Corey Knebel gets back on track after his injury and Brent Suter was very good at the end of last season.  Additionally, Alex Claudio was a go-to option out of the pen in 2019 and Bobby Wahl and David Phelps are wild cards. But good bullpens have depth and right now there are more questions than answers.

Will Corey Knebel return to form?

Speaking of Corey Knebel, he is coming off of Tommy John surgery and while we hope that he regains his form from 2018, you never truly know how a player will respond. As I mentioned in the last section, given some of the uncertainty in the bullpen, the Brewers are really going to need him to pitch well in 2020. The good news is that Suter was recovering from the same surgery last year and performed very well when he returned.

Will Logan Morrison make the roster?

One of the pleasant surprises of Spring Training was Logan Morrison. Over his 30 plate appearances, he slashed .300/.364/.600 with three home runs and seven RBIs. However, he was still a fringe roster player even with the additional spot this year. But there has been talk about expanding the rosters even further as the MLB will try to squeeze in as many games as possible whenever they are able to start playing again. Which is certainly good news for Morrison.

How will Narvaez perform behind the plate?

With a career slash line of .276/.361/.411, we all know that Omar Narvaez can swing a bat. But the big question mark is his defense. By several defensive metrics, he has been one of the worst catchers in baseball, but obviously the Milwaukee Brewers thought they could help him or they wouldn’t have traded for him. With that said, how much will he improve, if at all?

Will the 3B platoon be able to hold their own?

Unexpectedly, it appears that the Milwaukee Brewers will roll out a platoon at third base this season made up of Eric Sogard and Jedd Gyorko. Sogard is coming off of one of his better seasons, but the underlying numbers show that it isn’t sustainable. Meanwhile, Gyorko was injured for much of 2019 and when he did play, he really struggled at the plate.

Does the offense have enough fire-power?

There are certainly going to be plenty of games where Christian Yelich, Lorenzo Cain, Ryan Braun, or Keston Hiura will have to do a lot of the heavy lifting when it comes to offensive production. But what happens during off days? Or if there’s an off day? Or if one or more of those players is in a slump? Who is going to step up and produce?

Can Freddy Peralta take a big step forward?

Freddy Peralta has had a very inconsistent career up to this point but when he is on, he is brilliant. And that is a big reason why the Milwaukee Brewers offered him a contract extension this offseason. After relying heavily on his fastball, in winter ball, Peralta has added a slider and worked on his curveball. This resulted in some very good performances in the Dominican. Now can he carry that momentum over to the new season and take that next step forward?

Will the Brewers make a trade?

We won’t know this answer until we see where they stand record-wise at the trade deadline, but by being roughly $25 million under their Opening Day payroll from 2019, the Brewers certainly have room to make an addition or two if needed. But will they?

Will David Stearns’ approach work?

I mentioned it above, but instead of adding a big name or even retaining the ones they had – like Yasmani Grandal – Stearns let a number of key players from past years walk and brought in several bounce-back candidates on short-term, low-risk deals. Many of these new additions certainly have the potential to produce but they also come with low floors as well if things go south.

At this point, if anyone has earned the benefit of the doubt, it is David Stearns. But will this approach pay off with a third straight playoff appearance?