Milwaukee’s young and unproven roster will look to retain the division crown

The Brewers enter 2024 with hopes of retaining their division crown.

It’s undeniable, however, that the road to the National League Central title will prove more challenging this season. The Brewers won’t have Corbin Burnes or Brandon Woodruff. There will be a heavy reliance on youngsters either improving from last year or integrating rookies into the squad. The improvement shown by other teams is going to be another obstacle.

The Cincinnati Reds proved to be a feisty opponent as they led the division as late as July, but they faded over the second half of the season. They’ll only get better as the season goes on with their young core.

The St. Louis Cardinals and Chicago Cubs have reasonable hopes to be better than last year. Even the Pittsburgh Pirates could be another difficult test this season as they field a team of budding talent.

The Brewers have a reliable group of contributors stacked at the top of their lineup with Christian Yelich, Willy Adames, William Contreras, and Rhys Hoskins. That’s a necessary component, but the Brewers will need production from their depth to compete in the division this year.

According to FanGraphs, the Brewers are projected to have the 19th-best team WAR total (36.8). That’s in the same range as the Cardinals (40.6), Cubs (38.6), and Reds (34.8), while firmly ahead of the Pirates (31.5). With such similar projections, each team in the division is expected to finish between 77 and 83 wins. It will be a demanding test from the jump, so the impact of their non-star players will have an outsized influence on their postseason chances.

The Brewers offense was a liability at times last season, which was especially frustrating as the team had one of the best rotations in baseball. There were only four players who finished with a positive wRC+ in over 100 at-bats last season: Contreras (124 wRC+), Yelich (122), Mark Canha (120), and Carlos Santana (107).

You might notice that Canha and Santana are no longer part of the team, after joining at the trade deadline last year. This doesn’t mean the offense has to take a step backward. The addition of Hoskins will provide the type of player the Brewers sorely lacked last season. It does, however, mean that the young players on the roster need to prove they are set to take the next step in their development.

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