Brewers Exercise Contreras Option, Decline Senzatela
Milwaukee announced a set of option decisions and roster moves, including a $14.5 million option exercised on catcher William Contreras.
Updated on Nov. 2, 2026 in Baseball
The Milwaukee Brewers exercised their $14.5 million option on catcher William Contreras and declined a $14 million option on reliever Antonio Senzatela. The team also declined its portion of an $8.5 million mutual option for backup catcher Gary Sánchez.
Why it matters
The decisions set the Brewers' roster and payroll commitments heading into the offseason, retaining one catcher while letting go of a reliever and a backup catcher option. Lost waiver claims and unclaimed relievers further shape the team's active pool.
The Brewers exercised a $14.5 million option on Contreras while declining a $14 million option on Senzatela and their $8.5 million share of Sánchez's mutual option. The extraction does not indicate performance metrics for the players involved or how the team will allocate the freed salary.
The players
William Contreras
Contreras is a catcher whose option the Brewers exercised, keeping him under contract with the club.
Antonio Senzatela
Senzatela is a reliever whose $14 million option the Brewers declined, ending his club option.
Gary Sánchez
Sánchez is a backup catcher whose $8.5 million mutual option the Brewers declined on their end.
The details
The Brewers announced the option exercise and declinations on November 2, 2026. Akil Baddoo was lost on waivers to Pittsburgh, and relievers Bryse Wilson and Jared Koenig went unclaimed after being run through waivers. Koenig has elected free agency, and the team issued a qualifying offer to Jake Bauers and declined its half of a $20 million mutual option on Dustin May.
Timeline
November 2, 2026: Brewers announced option decisions and roster moves.
Season Trajectory
Each November, clubs across Major League Baseball must decide on club and mutual options and qualifying offers, shaping their free-agent and trade positioning for the following season. The Brewers' choices to keep Contreras while letting Senzatela and Sánchez go follow that annual pattern of rebalancing rosters before spring training.
Fantasy managers tracking Contreras will see his role locked in with the Brewers for the coming season, while Senzatela's exit removes a reliever from the club's bullpen mix. Anyone rostering Akil Baddoo should note he has moved to Pittsburgh after being claimed on waivers.
The takeaway
Roster decisions made in November often signal how a club plans to allocate payroll before free agency opens. Readers following the Brewers can watch how the freed salary is used in the weeks ahead.
Further reading
For more on the team's roster moves, see the Baseball coverage on Wisevoter.
