Matt Arnold exposed himself and Brewers as frauds with Wade Miley whiff

The 2024 season didn't end the way the Milwaukee Brewers had hoped, with Pete Alonso's dramatic three-run homer turning a 2-0 lead in the ninth inning of Game 3 of their NL Wild Card series against the New York Mets into a 4-2 loss and an early postseason exit. But there was still plenty of reason to feel good heading into the offseason: Milwaukee had won 93 games and captured the NL Central yet again in what was expected to be a bit of a reset year, and with one of the league's most exciting young cores in place for the foreseeable future, the sky was the limit.

So, what has the team done to build on all that optimism? As it turns out ... less than nothing. The biggest move the Brewers have made so far this winter involved trading away All-Star closer Devin Williams, sending the righty to the New York Yankees in exchange for pitcher Nestor Cortes and Minor League infielder Caleb Durbin. While Cortes and Durbin are both pieces that figure to help in 2025 and beyond, they're hardly needle-movers, and Milwaukee has done next to nothing to supplement them: The only two players GM Matt Arnold has signed to Major League deals in free agency are lefty Grant Wolfram and righty Elvin Rodriguez, each of whom cost less than $1 million.

The Central remains eminently winnable this season. But while the Chicago Cubs and Cincinnati Reds have spent the last two months adding talent, Milwaukee has sat on its hands. And their latest offseason whiff might be the saddest of all.

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Letting Wade Miley walk underlines dismal offseason for Matt Arnold, Brewers

While Milwaukee added Cortes to a rotation that already included Freddy Peralta, the returning Brandon Woodruff, Aaron Civale and Tobias Myers, the Brewers could certainly use a bit more starting pitching depth — especially considering Woodruff's injury history and the lack of proven options behind those four. And it seemed like the team had a ready-made answer in veteran lefty Wade Miley, who spent the last two seasons in Milwaukee and was looking to stick around after undergoing Tommy John surgery last spring.

“I’m not going to just sign anywhere,” Miley told the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel recently. “If I could draw it up, I would sign back in the Central [division], preferably wearing blue. Dark blue.”

Miley wouldn't be ready by Opening Day, but he'd be a nice option to have over the back half of the season to soak up some innings. And yet, despite the fact that he was desperate to re-sign with the Brewers, he wound up settling for a Minor League deal in Cincinnati.

Which begs the question: What exactly is Arnold up to? No one is expecting Milwaukee to start spending like the Los Angeles Dodgers, and fans certainly understand the economic context the team is operating within. But the Reds operate in that same context, and they had no problem adding Miley — and starter Brady Singer, infielder Gavin Lux and catcher Jose Trevino, all while nearly trading for outfielder Luis Robert Jr. This is the time where the Brewers should be looking to strike while the iron is hot. But rather than helping out Jackson Chourio, Brice Turang, Garrett Mitchell and the rest of their young guns, they're letting them languish on a roster that seems destined to take a step back in 2025.