As the early days of the Major League Baseball offseason continue to go by, all 30 clubs are trying to figure out how to become better. 

Whether it is retaining talent, signing new players during free agency, or making impactful trades, each organization has an outline of how it wants to approach things. However, for the teams that go into the offseason as World Series champions, the path forward is usually a little bit easier. 

They have already made it to the mountaintop, and now it is on them to defend their title. The Milwaukee Brewers find themselves in this position.

The Brewers are enjoying the fruits of their title run, but that doesn't mean that they can go to sleep at the wheel. There are still things the front office, led by two-time Executive of the Year award winner Matt Arnold, needs to do.

According to a recent article in The Athletic by former MLB executive Jim Bowden, Milwaukee’s priorities should be to continue celebrating, but also to give catcher William Contreras a new contract.

During the 2026 season, Contreras was everything the team could have asked for all around. 

The 28-year-old appeared in 147 games and posted a .270 batting average, a .341 on-base percentage, a .417 slugging percentage and a .758 OPS with 18 home runs and a career-high 94 RBIs.

In the playoffs, he was even better. Over the span of 13 postseason games, Contreras took 51 at-bats, and his batting average improved to .373 while his on-base percentage rose to .448, along with his slugging percentage (.588). 

He also posted a monstrous 1.036 OPS with three home runs and 9 RBIs.

Contreras's efforts earned him the World Series MVP award, and he cemented himself in Brewers history.

Contreras also improved as a backstop. He made 128 appearances at catcher during the regular season, 121 of which were starts, and he posted a perfect fielding percentage while also cutting down the number of stolen bases he allowed from 60 in 2025 to 48. 

He also caught 25 runners stealing, which was a career high.

Intangibly, Contreras is considered the emotional leader of the team, and it is part of what makes his ethos so special. As Bowden noted, Contreras is one year away from free agency, and Milwaukee's front office cannot let him walk. 

Bowden also believes that Contreras will be the highest-paid catcher in baseball history upon signing his new contract.

The Brewers have other players to worry about who are hitting free agency as well, such as first baseman Jake Bauers and pitchers Brandon Woodruff, Dustin May and Jojo Romero. But Contreras needs to be the priority.