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MILWAUKEE -- Believe it or not, it¡¯s already time for baseball¡¯s Winter Meetings. The annual convention of owners, front-office officials, agents and job-seekers (from players to aspiring GMs) convenes Sunday evening at the Hilton Anatole in Dallas.

In Part 1 of our preview of this year¡¯s event, we¡¯re ranking the Brewers¡¯ position groups -- catcher, infield, outfield, starters and relievers -- by what Milwaukee needs most as the offseason churns into a higher gear:

1. Infield
On the 40-man roster: Tyler Black, Vinny Capra, Oliver Dunn, Rhys Hoskins, Andruw Monasterio, Joey Ortiz, Brice Turang

The most obvious hole on the roster is at shortstop with the departure of free agent Willy Adames, but the Brewers have several ways they could fill his absence. They could sign a frontline shortstop (unlikely, given the limited options after Adames on the market) or trade for one. Or, they could focus instead on acquiring a third baseman or second baseman and hand shortstop duties to Ortiz or (less likely, considering he just won the NL¡¯s Platinum Glove Award while playing second base) Turang.

There were a couple of players to keep in mind for this mix on MLB.com¡¯s Mark Feinsand¡¯s list of trade chips ahead of the Winter Meetings. Young infielder Maikel Garcia of the Royals is one; he¡¯s only 24 years old, would fit right in as a baserunner (37 steals in 39 tries last season) and can play all over the infield. Third basemen on Feinsand¡¯s list include the Mets¡¯ change-of-scenery candidate Brett Baty and three All-Stars in the Phillies¡¯ Alec Bohm, the Cardinals¡¯ Nolan Arenado and the Rockies¡¯ Ryan McMahon.

2. Starting pitching
On the 40-man roster: Aaron Ashby, Aaron Civale, Robert Gasser, DL Hall, Logan Henderson, Tobias Myers, Chad Patrick, Freddy Peralta, Carlos Rodriguez, Brandon Woodruff

The Brewers matched a franchise record by using 17 starting pitchers last season, and while some of them were relievers working as openers, it still took a lot of arms to cover 162 games. Peralta leads the rotation once again heading into 2025, with many question marks behind him. Can Myers match his out-of-nowhere success as a rookie in ¡¯24? Can Woodruff return to anything resembling his former self following major shoulder surgery? Will the arbitration-eligible Civale still be a Brewer on Opening Day? Will Ashby and Hall be primarily starters or relievers? Will Gasser be ready to return from Tommy John surgery before season¡¯s end? Can Rodriguez, a two-time Minor League Pitcher of the Year, rebound from last season¡¯s disappointment? Are Henderson or Patrick ready to make the leap to the big leagues after being protected from the Rule 5 Draft?

With so much uncertainty, depth will be more important than ever, and you can expect GM Matt Arnold to add to this group before the start of Spring Training. Top pitching prospect Jacob Misiorowski isn¡¯t yet on the 40-man roster, but he¡¯s an option for a call-up if the Brewers believe he¡¯s ready. The Brewers also added Triple-A starting depth with left-hander Thomas Pannone, who signed a Minor League deal with an invitation to Major League camp.

• All of the 2024-2025 free agents, position by position

3. Relief pitching
On the 40-man roster: Ashby, J.B. Bukauskas, Hall, Henderson, Bryan Hudson, Tyler Jay, Jared Koenig, Nick Mears, Trevor Megill, Joel Payamps, Elvis Peguero, Abner Uribe, Devin Williams

The industry expects the Brewers to trade Williams, who is in the same contractual position -- with one remaining year of club control -- as Corbin Burnes found himself last year at this time. But the question is whether they will do it this winter or amid the frenzy of next year¡¯s Trade Deadline.

If they choose this winter to make a move, it could impact the rest of the offseason. Megill proved a worthy fill-in at closer while Williams was sidelined by a back injury for the first four months of last season, logging 20 saves. Payamps has been a steady setup man since coming to Milwaukee in the William Contreras trade. But then, just like the starting pitching group, we¡¯ve got questions. Was Koenig¡¯s breakthrough season for real? Can Hudson shake off the disappointment of going from All-Star Game candidate to demoted down the stretch? Can Peguero find consistency? Assuming no setbacks in his comeback from season-ending knee surgery, can Uribe keep his cool? Why hasn¡¯t Mears¡¯ ERA matched his good stuff?

The group has the makings of a really good bullpen, with Uribe a prime breakout candidate once he serves a brief suspension, and especially if Ashby, Hall or Misiorowski log relief innings. Other prospect names to know include Brett Wichrowski (MLB Pipeline¡¯s No. 18 Brewers prospect), Craig Yoho (No. 20) and Coleman Crow (No. 30).

4. Catchers
On the 40-man roster: William Contreras, Eric Haase, Jeferson Quero

The Brewers could add depth here, but Contreras is entrenched as the starter while the highly regarded Quero, MLB Pipeline¡¯s top Brewers prospect, completes a comeback from shoulder surgery that cost him all of last season, and continues his development. Wes Clarke, Nick Kahle and Darrien Miller are some of the depth pieces in the Minors.

5. Outfield
On the 40-man roster: Jackson Chourio, Isaac Collins, Sal Frelick, Brewer Hicklen, Garrett Mitchell, Blake Perkins, Christian Yelich

The Brewers look deep in the outfield, assuming no setbacks for Yelich in his comeback from back surgery. He¡¯s expected to be ready for Opening Day. Chourio¡¯s emergence down the stretch last season, when he became the youngest player to join the 20-20 club on the way to finishing third in NL Rookie of the Year balloting, is the key to the whole thing, since it gives the Brewers flexibility to play Yelich in the outfield as much or as little as they wish while mixing and matching with Gold Glove Award winner Frelick, Gold Glove Award finalist Perkins and Mitchell, who is no slouch as a defender himself.