The New York Yankees will have to decide if they want to keep Luke Weaver in free agency. Weaver has stated in the past that he’d be willing to stay with the Yankees, but itâll likely come down to money. Over the past few years, there have been parts where Weaver looks to be very good, while others suggest that he’s an average reliever, at best. He struggled a bit throughout the 2025 campaign, posting a 3.62 ERA.
In the 2024 season, he was a massive piece of what the Yankees did, posting a 2.89 ERA and serving as their closer for much of the season.
Looking ahead to his free agency, Jackson Roberts of Sports Illustrated recently linked him to the Milwaukee Brewers, stating that he might even be cheap enough for Milwaukee to take a look at him.Â
âWeaver looked as if he’d be cashing in on a pretty significant contract this winter, but the bottom fell out in the second half of the season. He had a 5.31 regular-season ERA in 39 innings after returning from the injured list in June, then allowed five earned runs and recorded just one out in his three playoff appearances.
âThe Brewers are the Brewers, so they’ll probably instead find someone in the Rule 5 draft no fan of the team has ever heard of and turn him into a quality eighth-inning man. But perhaps the price tag on Weaver has dropped far enough to consider this move,â he wrote.
Will the Brewers Pursue Luke Weaver?
If the Milwaukee Brewers are interested in someone like Weaver, it could make sense for the New York Yankees to let him walk, depending on the price.Â
The Brewers never really want to spend money, so that’s something the Yankees will have on their side.Â
Regarding what he could be looking at, Jim Bowden of The Athletic predicted a two-year, $20 million deal, which isn’t a terrible starting point.Â
“Weaver was one of the best high-leverage relievers in 2024 for the Yankees and he had a dominant first half of the season this year, posting a 2.91 ERA. It was a different story in the second half when he posted a 4.40 ERA and there was speculation he was tipping his pitches. This winter, teams will have to decide whether Weaverâs second-half issues are fixable and he can be the pitcher he was in the first half… Contract prediction: 2-years, $20 million,” he wrote.
Yankees’ Luke Weaver Wants to Be a Starter
One thing teams in Major League Baseball, including the New York Yankees and Milwaukee Brewers, will have to consider is that Weaver stated at the end of the regular season that he’d be willing to return as a starter.Â
If that’s the case, he could be looking at more money in free agency. Starters always get paid more than relievers, outside of some of the top relievers in baseball.Â
If Weaver really wants to be a starter, it also changes his fit with the Yankees and other teams.Â
“I would say, look, the door is open,” Weaver said. “I am never going to just say ‘absolutely not.’ Like, ‘Hey, when the time comes, let’s talk about it. What does that look like?’”
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