David Stearns has been one of the busiest general managers in baseball during each of the last two offseasons while at the helm for the Milwaukee Brewers. It figures that this upcoming winter will be another one teeming with activity, but this offseason will have a much different tone from Stearns’ previous ones as the organization has flipped the switch from rebuilding to competing.
The Milwaukee Nine entered last season with an inexperienced roster and limited expectations, but quality coaching (beginning with Sporting News NL Manager of the Year Craig Counsell), player development, and some tempered “win-now” moves helped the club take the so-called “next step” as a franchise and put together an 86-win campaign in 2017.