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- Brice Turang ($1,155,884)
- Caleb Durbin ($707,139)
- Isaac Collins ($631,766)
- Sal Frelick ($507,232)
- Jackson Chourio ($414,477)
- Quinn Priester ($307,705)
- Chad Patrick ($305,643)
- Abner Uribe ($271,917)
- Aaron Ashby ($228,384)
- Joey Ortiz ($212,245)
For many of those names, that’s a solid chunk of change compared to their base salaries. Turang led the way with a bonus that was 149% of his 2025 salary, after a season in which he posted a career-best 124 wRC+ and started to transmute his raw power into in-game results. Durbin and Collins about doubled their earnings after emerging as legitimate Rookie of the Year candidates in their first full big-league seasons. Priester and Patrick, who stabilized the rotation at times throughout the year, added about 40% of their league-minimum salaries.
MLB introduced the pre-arbitration bonus pool as part of the 2022-2026 collective bargaining agreement to reward players for producing early in their careers. It’s meant to ameliorate the tension created by the fact that when young stars first reach the majors, they have virtually no earning power. Every team pays into a $50-million pool, which is then distributed to all players who are not yet eligible for arbitration—including those (like Chourio and Ashby) who signed extensions. Award-based bonuses are bestowed based on a player’s finish in MVP, Cy Young, Rookie of the Year, or All-MLB Team voting. The remaining funds are awarded using a WAR-based formula.
Most of this year’s Milwaukee recipients will be eligible for more bonuses next year. Only Turang is arbitration-eligible in 2026, due to his Super Two status. Jacob Misiorowski, Logan Henderson, and Robert Gasser are among the candidates for added earnings a year from now, depending on how much they contribute next season. For now, the length of this list underscores the depth of Milwaukee’s corps of players under long-term team and cost control, and the combination of these payments and their forthcoming playoff shares should make the clubhouse a happier place come spring training.
Jack has written about the Brewers since 2018 and joined Brewer Fanatic for the 2024 season, integrating analysis with on-site reporting from the clubhouse. He also appears weekly as a Brewers analyst on FM 95.3-99.1 The Score and is a regular guest on Brewers-themed podcasts and radio programs.
