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By Jon Paul Hoornstra
Contributing Sports Writer
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The Milwaukee Brewers won three consecutive National League Central titles despite never running a player payroll higher than 20th in MLB in any of those seasons. Through June 8, more than one-third of the way through the 2026 season, they are leading the second-place St. Louis Cardinals by 5.5 games in the division.
The Brewers' success hinges on internal development of their own players, rather than bringing in stars from outside the organization. If history is any indication, their latest $31 million investment in Luis Lara — an outfielder who's never played a regular-season game in MLB — will be wise.
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According to multiple reports June 9, the extension keeps Lara under team control for seven more years, and can max out at $79 million if he unlocks all his performance-related incentives.
Lara's contract reportedly includes three club options. The Brewers did not confirm the extension, which was first reported by Spencer Michaelis, a podcaster and contributor to the fan site Brewer Fanatic.
Lara, 21, is a consensus Top 100 prospect in baseball who reached the Triple-A level for the first time this year. He's slashing .338/.447/.500 in Nashville with 18 stolen bases in 22 attempts.
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Lara isn't even the best prospect — or the best outfielder — in the Brewers' vaunted system.
Shortstop Cooper Pratt, 21, also has yet to debut in Milwaukee but has a contract with the Brewers through 2035. Outfielder Jackson Chourio, who turned 22 in March, is hitting .305 in his third major league season. The Brewers have team options on him through 2033.
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Outfielder Jesús Made has 19, is a consensus Top 5 prospect in baseball. He doesn't have a long-term extension, but he does have a .790 OPS for the Biloxi Shuckers, where he is the youngest player at the Double-A level.
The Brewers still don't have a World Series championship in their history. They have reached MLB's championship round only once in their 58-year history.
But after losing the NL Championship Series to the Los Angeles Dodgers last year, and locking up several core parts of their future for years to come, the Brewers have never had a better chance of ending their drought.
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