MILWAUKEE -- Back from a holiday break, the business of baseball will be back in full swing by the end of this week.

Here are the dates to know in the run-up to the 2024 regular season:

Friday: Deadline to exchange arbitration figures
If history holds, there will be a flurry of signings on or before Friday’s deadline for teams and arbitration-eligible players to make a deal or move on to the next step in the arbitration process. After trading Adrian Houser and Tyrone Taylor to the Mets just before Christmas, Milwaukee still has seven such cases, led by ace starter Corbin Burnes, ace closer Devin Williams and shortstop Willy Adames. The other eligible players are relievers Hoby Milner, Joel Payamps and Bryse Wilson and first baseman/outfielder Jake Bauers, who was acquired in a trade with the Yankees at the non-tender deadline. If the sides can't agree on a contract by Friday, then both must submit a salary proposal for the upcoming season, with a hearing scheduled between Jan. 29 and Feb. 16. If the case goes all the way to a hearing -- likely, given the Brewers’ unofficial policy for instances in which the sides go so far as filing figures -- a panel of arbitrators would hear each side’s case and select one of the two salary figures (nothing in between) for 2024.

Saturday & Sunday: Brewers Winter Warm-Up
The two-day event consists of an autograph session and live show on Saturday at the Miller High Life Theater in downtown Milwaukee, followed by kids clinics the next day. The clinics are sold out, but tickets remain for Saturday's event. Players expected to attend include Jackson Chourio, Christian Yelich, Joey Wiemer and Owen Miller, plus top prospects Tyler Black, Robert Gasser, Jacob Misiorowski, Carlos Rodriguez and Brock Wilken.

Jan. 15: International signing period opens
Last year, the Brewers signed outfielder Yophery Rodríguez, the No. 22 overall prospect on the Top 50 International Prospects list, for $1.5 million; shortstop Filippo Di Turi, who ranked No. 33, for $1.3 million; and No. 35 Kevin Ereu, a shortstop, for $1.4 million. Today they are MLB Pipeline’s Nos. 13, 19 and 29 Brewers prospects, and Rodríguez is one of Pipeline’s picks to click in '24. For this year’s ranking of the top international prospects, click here.

Jan. 23: BBWAA Hall of Fame voting results announced
Former Brewers first-round Draft pick Gary Sheffield is on the ballot for the final time, and he’ll need at least 75 percent of the vote from the Baseball Writers’ Association of America electorate to secure his spot in Cooperstown. In 2023, he was named on 55 percent of the ballots.

Feb. 14: Pitchers and catchers report for Spring Training
Spring camp begins at American Family Fields of Phoenix, on Valentine’s Day.

Feb. 24: Cactus League opener
The Brewers open exhibition play at the Padres on Saturday, Feb. 24, at 1:10 p.m. Arizona time. The “home” opener is the following day against the Rockies.

March 8-9: Big League Weekend in Las Vegas
A Brewers split squad will play a pair of games at Las Vegas Ballpark against the A’s, whose move to Las Vegas was approved by MLB’s owners in November. Milwaukee will be making its fourth appearance for Big League Weekend, having also played in Vegas during Spring Training in 1993, '98 and '99. Another Brewers split squad will remain at home in Phoenix to host the A’s on March 8 and the Mariners on March 9.

March 15: Spring Breakout
The Brewers rank third on MLB Pipeline’s list of baseball’s best farm systems, and will put that talent to the test against the Royals’ top prospects in the inaugural Spring Breakout. Milwaukee and Kansas City will play a doubleheader that day, one game pitting prospects against each other, and the other a traditional Cactus League game.

March 28: Opening Day
It’s GM Matt Arnold’s Brewers against David Stearns’ Mets at Citi Field in the opening series.

Who holds the Brewers single-season record for innings pitched without making a single start?

A. Chuck Crim
B. Ken Sanders
C. Jim Slaton
D. Bob Wickman

The temptation might be to shrug off last week’s trade with the Dodgers for left-hander Bryan Hudson, the 6-foot-8, 26-year-old reliever who allowed 17 baserunners in his first 8 2/3 innings in the big leagues last season.

Don’t.

The Brewers have shown a knack in recent years for turning relatively minor acquisitions into significant contributors. Whether Hudson, who was cut loose by the Dodgers to free a 40-man roster spot for Japanese star Yoshinobu Yamamoto, is that kind of pickup remains to be seen. But it’s worth keeping an open mind.

Think about the Brewers’ track record in recent years. When they acquired Payamps in that three-team trade with the A’s and Braves in December 2022, all of the focus was on catcher William Contreras. Payamps, though, was worth 1.2 fWAR in '23 and became a setup man to Williams. The Brewers got Wilson from the Pirates for cash in January and he became a key bullpen piece thanks to his ability to effectively bounce between roles. Trevor Megill was acquired from the Twins last April for a player to be named, and took such a jump in the second half of the season that he delivered 0.8 fWAR in only 29 appearances.

And looking back further, can you remember off the top of your head how the Brewers acquired Milner? It wasn’t via waivers or trade, it was a free-agent deal in December 2020. The season before, he’d been designated for assignment by the Phillies and outrighted from the 40-man roster by the Rays. For the Brewers, he’s been one of the organization’s most reliable relief arms for three years and counting.

Will Hudson be the next under-the-radar pickup to contribute? He’s not the only candidate; the Brewers have also traded this winter for former Royals righty Taylor Clarke and signed former Astro Enoli Paredes to a Minor League deal with an invitation to big league camp. They have some upside.

One baseball ops person compared Hudson to Brent Suter with more velocity, referring both to Hudson’s velocity jump from 2022 to '23 as he settled into relief work, and to the way his fastball has a knack for looking invisible to hitters. That trait helps Hudson be effective against hitters on both sides of the plate, and opens a number of possibilities for usage in 2024, whether that means deploying him as a traditional, one-inning reliever against hitters who have a tough time vs. lefties, or as a multi-inning reliever.

B. Ken “The Bulldog” Sanders threw 136 1/3 innings in 1971, a single-season record for a Brewers pitcher who didn’t start any games. He led the Majors that season with 31 saves, set a Brewers record with 83 appearances (matched by Alex Claudio in 2019, but never exceeded) and won the American League Fireman of the Year Award. 

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