Cubs rival sends All-Star ace to Mets and fans already know how this will end

What has made the Milwaukee Brewers such a thorn in the Chicago Cubs' side is that they have mastered the strategy of trading impending free agents. Between the trades of Corbin Burnes and Josh Hader, the Brewers have threaded the needle between resetting while acquiring talent that helps them stay at the top of the National League Central.

The Brewers are following that blueprint once again, sending All-Star starting pitcher Freddy Peralta to the New York Mets.

Cubs fans already know how this Brewers trade ends (and it’s not good)

The Brewers have largely been dormant this offseason, and that is partially because Brandon Woodruff accepted the team's qualifying offer.

Milwaukee was quick to suggest that Woodruff's price tag wouldn't signal a trade of Peralta, but that likely was lip service. Peralta is earning $8 million in his final season before free agency, and with the free-agent market thinning, the expectation was that the Brewers would find a trade partner before Opening Day.

Once the Mets signed Bo Bichette, they shifted their focus to adding a starting pitcher and worked quickly to land Peralta.

The Dodgers were rumored to be circling with interest in Peralta, but they likely are holding onto their top prospects with the hope that Tarik Skubal becomes available at some point before the trade deadline in July.

The good news for the Cubs is that Peralta is out of the National League Central, but the Brewers just got two very good prospects in his place.

Jett Williams was New York's 2022 first-round pick and finished the 2025 season at the Triple-A level. The 22-year-old prospect is a Top-30 prospect in all of baseball, and there is a strong chance he reaches the Major League level in 2026.

Brandon Sproat was the Mets' 2023 second-round pick and was viewed as their No. 5 prospect before making his Major League debut last season. Sproat's fastball can reach triple digits, making him a natural fit for the Brewers' pitching infrastructure. If he reaches his ceiling, it's hard to argue with Milwaukee making this trade, as they just added a pre-arbitration starting pitcher who could potentially ascend toward the top of their rotation.

In the short term, this move should give the Cubs more incentive to keep adding this offseason. They should have an advantage over Milwaukee, at least until Williams and Sproat figure it out at the major league level, and Chicago shouldn't waste that opportunity.

Flexing their financial muscle is the only way the Cubs can counter the Brewers pulling off these brilliant trades.