The Milwaukee Brewers have been fortunate to have franchise icon Brandon Woodruff as a member of the organization dating back to 2014 when he was selected in the 11th round of the Major League Baseball Draft.

But will that remain the case in 2027? Woodruff is a free agent right now after playing the 2026 season on the qualifying offer. In 2026, he made just over $22 million and was able to make nine starts in the regular season before being shut down for what was expected to be the rest of the season. But he triumphantly returned in the World Series and was able to have his magical moment to complete the improbable comeback.

What Will It Take To Keep Brandon Woodruff?

He entered the offseason healthy. If he stays that way, he showed in 2026 that he can still be elite. He had a 2.98 ERA in his nine regular season starts. But what would it cost to bring him back? Right now, Spotrac has his projected market value at just over $11.8 million over one year. The Brewers will have to weigh whether a number like that is too high at this point. If that's what Woodruff got, he would be the third-highest-paid player on the team right now, behind Christian Yelich and William Contreras.

When it comes to Woodruff, he's a franchise hero. He is one of the pillars of the franchise and is one of the biggest reasons for the turnaround we've witnessed in recent memory, like Yelich. But he's made just 32 regular season appearances since the beginning of the 2023 season. That has to be weighed as well here.

After the big contract in 2026, it wouldn't be the craziest idea in the world to go below the Spotrac projection, especially if a second year was added. What about a two-year deal in the $20 million range? It would be a shock to see Woodruff wearing another jersey and that really doesn't seem likely at all right now. A two-year deal with a $10 million annual average would pay him for the talent he clearly has, as well as the fact that he's a franchise leader. Anything more than that would arguably start to get tricky for a club that doesn't hand out massive deals in the first place.

Woodruff is a franchise icon and should be back in 2027. But the Brewers also shouldn't break the bank in the process.