Brewers Owner Tells Fans It'll Be Too Expensive to Keep Star Players

Milwaukee Brewers owner Mark Attansio has some bad news for fans hoping star players will stick around. It's just too expensive for him.

Despite playing in a relatively small market, the Brewers have managed to develop a talented core group.

Homegrown talent like Brandon Woodruff and Corbin Burnes have combined with acquired players like Willy Adames to put the Brewers in position to return to the postseason after a 2022 miss.

All three of those players will be free agents after the 2024 season, creating some urgency as to the direction of the franchise.

Attansio, who is worth roughly $750 million, simply doesn't think he'll have the money to keep those key players in Milwaukee.

He spoke to the media recently and essentially told fans that extensions would present a near insurmountable "challenge."

I'm sure Brewers fans will be as thrilled to hear that as they were to hear they'd missed a flyover because the roof was closed.

MILWAUKEE, WISCONSIN - APRIL 03: A general view of American Family Field prior to a game between the Milwaukee Brewers and the New York Mets on Opening Day on April 03, 2023 in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. (Photo by Stacy Revere/Getty Images)

Padres Contradict Brewers Owner

The Brewers have not had the best recent record when it comes to their own players.

Corbin Burnes, for example, expressed disappointment in how his arbitration case was handled by the team. Despite his outstanding 2022 campaign, he said they pinned the blame for missing the postseason on him.

Generally, players who feel they've been insulted by their own organization don't re-sign there anyway. But Attansio's announcement makes even less sense when compared to what the San Diego Padres are doing.

READ: SAN DIEGO PADRES SHOW BEING ‘SMALL MARKET’ IS AN OWNERSHIP CHOICE

The Padres extended Fernando Tatis Jr., signed and extended Manny Machado, just signed Yu Darvish to an extension, extended Jake Cronenworth, signed Robert Suarez, signed Xander Bogaerts and committed to paying huge arbitration salaries to Juan Soto and Josh Hader. All to try and win a World Series.

Sure, the Brewers play in just the 38th largest television market, but San Diego is 30th. And they're spending and extending stars left and right.

The Padres estimated payroll is $250 million, while the Brewers are spending just $120 million. Despite it being extremely unlikely the Padres are bringing in more than twice the revenue.

MLB owners frequently choose to be cheap, and Mark Attansio is telling Brewers fans that he's almost certainly going to continue that trend.