- Brewers right-hander Jakob Junis suffered a scary incident earlier this week when he was struck by an errant fly ball during the club’s pregame workouts prior to a game against the Pirates in Pittsburgh. Fortunately, Junis is back traveling with the team and spoke to Todd Rosiak of the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel yesterday. The right-hander noted that he underwent an MRI and CT scan, both of which came back clean, before he was released from the hospital. Now that he’s back with the team, it appears Junis is set to continue rehabbing from the shoulder impingement that has cost him most of the season to this point. Per MLB.com’s Adam McCalvy, Brewers manager Pat Murphy recently indicated that the club may look to bring Junis back into the fold as a reliever rather than build him up to start. It’s something of a surprise given the recent injuries suffered by lefties DL Hall and Wade Miley, though it’s possible that a multi-inning relief role could allow the Brewers to maximize Junis’s innings in the short-term.
Brewers Rumors
Wade Miley To Undergo Tommy John Surgery
Brewers left-hander Wade Miley needs repair on the ulnar collateral ligament in his left elbow, per Todd Rosiak of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. The lefty will be undergoing Tommy John surgery, per Adam McCalvy of MLB.com. McCalvy adds that Miley will spend the next 10 to 12 months rehabbing from the surgery before deciding if he will continue his career. McCalvy adds in a second tweet that Miley is leaning towards coming back. “I’ve always said I want to go out on my own [terms],” he said. “I still feel like I’ve got more in the tank.”
The news of the surgery doesn’t come as a total shock. He was placed on the injured list earlier this week with elbow inflammation and was clearly trying to avoid thinking of the possibility of going under the knife. “I don’t want to be concerned,” he said a few days ago. “Obviously, the ugly thought probably ends it for me, so I’m trying not to take myself there right now. I don’t know if I’d be willing to go through something like that and I’m hoping it’s nothing to that extent. But like I said, without imaging, we won’t know.”
Since then, despite getting the bad news, he seems to have turned a corner in terms of his acceptance of the situation. As mentioned up top, he’s now leaning towards coming back. Rosiak relays a two-minute clip on X of Miley discussing the situation, in which he actually seems sort of optimistic at times. “Weirdly, kind of excited,” he says. “Get this thing fixed and maybe I can pitch without pain for a little bit, you know? I’ve been dealing with elbow stuff for four, five years now. Looking on the bright side, if we get this thing fixed up, who knows?”
It’s true that Miley, 37, has been dealing with his share of injury setbacks in recent years. From 2012 to 2017, he tossed at least 157 innings in six straight seasons, posting a combined 4.37 earned run average in that time. But in 2018, he only got to 80 2/3 innings, missing a couple of months due to an oblique strain. He got up to 167 1/3 in 2019 but then fell shy of 15 innings in the shortened 2020 season, missing time due to a groin strain and a shoulder strain.
He was able to stay healthy enough in 2021 to log 163 innings over 28 starts, but then was capped at 37 frames in 2022, spending time on the IL due to elbow inflammation and a shoulder strain. There was another uptick last year, as he got to 23 starts and 120 1/3 innings, though a lat strain and elbow discomfort did separately send him to the IL a couple of times.
Now he’s unfortunately going to have to endure the lengthiest absence of his career and it seems there’s at least some possibility he never comes back. Given his comments today, it seems more likely that he’ll try to return at some point in 2025, but he’ll have plenty of time to think about it.
He signed a one-year deal with the Brewers in the offseason, which comes with a mutual option. Those options are almost never picked up by both sides and the surgery makes it a certainty that the Brewers will decline their end, sending Miley back to the open market.
Free agent pitchers that are coming off a notable surgery such as this will often sign two-year deals, with the signing club knowing that they may not get much return on their investment in the first season while the pitcher is hurt. Miley will be an interesting case since he’s already 37 years old, with his next birthday in November. A two-year deal would therefore be covering his age-38 and age-39 seasons, a few years older than most pitchers who sign such deals. But he’s still been effective when on the mound, as he had a 3.14 ERA with Milwaukee just last year.
For now, the Brewers will have to move forward with yet another starter subtracted from their rotation mix. Brandon Woodruff required shoulder surgery late last year and it’s questionable whether or not he can return this year. Corbin Burnes was traded to the Orioles in the winter. DL Hall and Jakob Junis are both currently on the IL and now Miley is going to miss the rest of the year.
Their current rotation consists of Freddy Peralta, Colin Rea, Joe Ross, Tobias Myers and Bryse Wilson. Ross hardly pitched over the previous two years due to various injuries. Myers just made his major league debut this week while Wilson was just moved in from the bullpen, having not had a regular starting gig since 2022.
There’s plenty of uncertainty in that group, but the club is managing to hold onto the division lead for now. Coming into today, they are half a game up on the Cubs, with the three other clubs not far behind. As the season rolls along, improved health from Hall or Junis could play a factor, or perhaps prospect Robert Gasser could work his way into the mix. But it also wouldn’t be a surprise to see the club searching for pitching at this summer’s deadline, given the setbacks they’ve been dealt.
Brewers Place Wade Miley On Injured List With Elbow Inflammation
April 25: The initial wave of imaging on Miley was inconclusive, manager Pat Murphy tells the team’s beat (X link via Curt Hogg of the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel). He’s headed for further testing — an arthrogram, specifically — to determine if there’s any ligament damage in his elbow.
April 22: The Brewers announced a series of transactions today, most notably placing left-hander Wade Miley on the 15-day injured list due to left elbow inflammation, retroactive to April 19. Right-hander Tobias Myers was recalled in a corresponding move. Also, first baseman Jake Bauers was reinstated from the bereavement list with infielder Andruw Monasterio optioned to Triple-A Nashville.
At this point, it’s unclear if the Brewers expect the injury to be serious, but there’s always some level of concern when a pitcher’s throwing elbow is involved. Per Curt Hogg of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, the left-hander is going to get some imaging done tomorrow and Miley says he is trying to fight back the negative thoughts in his head. “I don’t want to be concerned,” he says at the end of the clip in the link from Hogg. “Obviously, the ugly thought probably ends it for me, so I’m trying not to take myself there right now. I don’t know if I’d be willing to go through something like that and I’m hoping it’s nothing to that extent. But like I said, without imaging, we won’t know.”
Miley, 37, has had plenty of injury scares in recent years, only twice getting to 125 innings since 2017. In 2022, he missed time both due to elbow inflammation and a shoulder strain in his throwing arm, logging just 37 innings. He got up to 120 1/3 frames last year but also missed time due to a lat strain and some elbow discomfort. Here in 2024, he started the season on the IL due to a shoulder impingement, came back to make two starts and is now heading to the IL again.
The “ugly thought” he alluded to presumably refers to Tommy John surgery, which generally requires something in the range of 14-18 months to recover from. At this point in the calendar, that would wipe out the rest of Miley’s 2024 season and much of the 2025 campaign as well. If he were to go through all that, he would be nearing his 39th birthday by the time he got back to a mound. Based on his comments, it sounds like it’s not a road he wants to go down or even think about right now.
The club will surely provide more information when they have it, but it will be a challenging situation for them regardless due to some other injuries in their rotation. Brandon Woodruff had shoulder surgery last year and won’t be an option until late in 2024 season, if at all. Jakob Junis has been on the IL for a couple of weeks due to a shoulder impingement while DL Hall was placed on the IL just yesterday due to a left knee sprain.
That leaves Milwaukee with a rotation consisting of Freddy Peralta, Colin Rea and Joe Ross for the time being. The recent IL placements of Hall and Miley mean they will have to scramble to fill a couple of spots. Reaching into the minors leagues will also have injury complications as Robert Gasser, one of the club’s top prospects, hasn’t yet pitched in Triple-A due to a bone spur in his left elbow.
Myers, 25, was added to the club’s roster last week but was optioned the next day without getting into a game and is still looking to make his major league debut. He has been pitching multi-inning stints in the minors and could perhaps take on some bulk work for the Brewers. Bryse Wilson has past starting experience and has been throwing multi-inning stints in the big leagues this year, so he’s another option. Aaron Ashby and Janson Junk are also on the 40-man roster and could be recalled to provide some length.
The Brewers are currently 14-6 and sitting atop the National League Central, but the ongoing rotation issues will make it a challenge to hang onto that spot. The team and Miley will obviously be hoping that tomorrow’s imaging doesn’t find anything concerning and that the lefty can rejoin the club after a brief respite.
Brewers Place DL Hall On 15-Day Injured List
The Brewers have placed left-hander DL Hall on the 15-day injured list due to a left knee sprain. Left-hander Jared Koenig was called up from Triple-A Nashville to take Hall’s place on the active roster.
As manager Pat Murphy told MLB.com’s Adam McCalvy and other reporters, Hall hurt his knee while fielding a bunt single from Michael Siani in the second inning. The southpaw ended up lasting 3 2/3 innings and allowing four runs on five walks and five hits, though the sprain can’t be blamed for all these struggles, as Hall had already given up three walks and two hits before Siani’s single.
It remains to be seen how much time Hall could miss, as while Murphy described the strain as “mild,” the injury was still under evaluation. However, the 15-day absence only adds to what has been a dreadful start to both Hall’s 2024 season and his Brewers tenure altogether.
Acquired from the Orioles as part of the Corbin Burnes trade package, Hall worked almost exclusively as a reliever in his two previous MLB seasons in Baltimore, but the Brewers opted to stretch him out as a starter. The results haven’t been pretty — Hall has a 7.71 ERA, 15.5% strikeout rate, and an 11.9% walk rate across four starts and 16 1/3 innings. Murphy told reporters yesterday that things would have to improve in order for Hall to stick in Milwaukee’s rotation, though this injury could put that decision on hold for at least a couple of weeks.
McCalvy figures that Bryse Wilson will likely be moved into the rotation in Hall’s place for the time being, both because of Wilson’s recent experience as a spot starter and due to a relative lack of other healthy options. Hall joins Jakob Junis on the big league injured list, and top prospect Robert Gasser is on the IL at Triple-A. Koenig has some starting experience but has worked primarily as a reliever since the start of the 2023 campaign, so it seems likelier that he’ll just replace Wilson in the long relief role.
Murphy: "Adjustments" Needed For Hall To Remain In Rotation
Left-hander DL Hall was a key piece of the return that the Brewers landed in the Corbin Burnes trade, and the club made clear upon acquiring him that Hall would be used as a member of the starting rotation despite the 25-year-old having been used almost exclusively out of the bullpen during his time in Baltimore. That experiment hasn’t gone well through Hall’s first four starts, however. Not only does Hall currently sport a 7.71 ERA with a walk rate (11.9%) that nearly matches his deflated strikeout rate (15.4%), but he’s also failed to record an out in the fifth inning in three of his four starts with the club.
Given those considerable struggles, it’s not necessarily surprising that Brewers manager Pat Murphy indicated after Hall’s start Saturday that the club might look to shift gears if Hall can’t get things on track. In conversation with reporters (including MLB.com’s Adam McCalvy) that evening, Murphy admitted that “there’s got to be adjustments made” for Hall to remain a member of the rotation, adding that the club “can’t keep letting him throw 3 1/3 and say ’that’s fine.'”
Hall is currently joined in the rotation by Freddy Peralta, Wade Miley, Colin Rea, and Joe Ross. Should the young southpaw find himself moved to the bullpen at some point, left-hander Aaron Ashby is one candidate to step into a rotation role, though he’s dealt with struggles of his own to this point in the season. Ashby was blown up in his lone big league start this year, allowing eight runs (four earned) in 3 2/3 frames. His time in the minors hasn’t gone much better, with a 9.28 ERA in three starts. If Ashby continues to be unable to get results, the Brewers may be best served simply waiting for right-hander Jakob Junis to return from the injured list after being sidelined by a shoulder impingement for the last two weeks before considering a change in Hall’s usage.
Odell Jones Passes Away
Former big league right-hander Odell Jones has passed away, per John Perrotto of Pittsburgh Baseball Now. No cause of death was given for Jones, who was 71.
Born in California in 1953, Jones was signed by the Pirates as an undrafted free agent in 1971. He made his debut with that club in 1975 but tossed just three innings. He got a more proper run of play in the show in 1977, tossing 108 innings for the Bucs in a swing role. He posted an earned run average of 5.08 over 15 starts and 19 relief appearances.
Jones would go on to bounce around the league, serving in various roles. He was traded to the Mariners in 1978 and then back to the Pirates in 1980. He went to the Rangers in the 1982 Rule 5 draft and recorded 10 saves for them in 1983. He later signed with the Orioles and Blue Jays, though he didn’t make it to the majors with the latter club.
For many baseball fans, Jones is best known for one magical night where almost everything lined up for him. He was with the Brewers in 1988 as a 35-year-old journeyman. Teddy Higuera was supposed to start against Cleveland on May 28 but was dealing with some back spasms, per JD Radcliffe of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, which led to Jones taking the ball instead.
Though he wasn’t even the scheduled starter, Jones had the best performance of his life that night. He was perfect through seven, until he issued a one-out walk to Mel Hall. He kept his no-hitter going into the ninth, until it was broken up by a one-out single off the bat of Ron Washington, now the manager of the Angels. Dan Plesac came into to get the final two outs as the Brewers beat Cleveland 2-0 (boxscore here at Baseball Reference).
That was the final big league season for Jones, who finished his career with a 4.42 ERA in 549 1/3 innings over nine different major league seasons. MLBTR joins the baseball world in sending our condolences to the Jones family as well as his fans and friends throughout the game.
Red Sox Acquire Vladimir Gutierrez
The Red Sox announced Thursday evening that they’ve acquired right-hander Vladimir Gutierrez from the Brewers in exchange for cash and optioned him to Triple-A Worcester. Milwaukee designated Gutierrez for assignment earlier in the week. In order to open a spot on the 40-man roster, Boston transferred injured shortstop Trevor Story from the 10-day IL to the 60-day IL. Story underwent season-ending shoulder surgery last week. The Sox also announced that lefty Joe Jacques was optioned to Worcester following today’s game.
The 28-year-old Gutierrez originally signed with the Reds on a hefty $4.75MM bonus (plus a 100% tax on that bonus) in 2016 after defecting from his native Cuba. He profiled as one of Cincinnati’s top pitching prospects for a few years before making his MLB debut in 2021. The 6’1″, 205-pound righty pitched 150 2/3 innings for the Reds from 2021-22, turning in a 5.44 ERA with a 17.3% strikeout rate and 10.4% walk rate that were both worse than league-average.
Despite those struggles, Gutierrez would likely have received a longer look with the Reds — had he remained healthy. His elbow had other ideas, as a torn ulnar collateral ligament in ’22 led to Tommy John surgery. Gutierrez returned to the mound to toss a handful of minor league innings last September but didn’t get back to the big leagues. He was removed from Cincinnati’s 40-man roster and became a free agent following the season. After a few showcases for big league scouts, he signed a minor league deal with the Marlins.
It’s been a whirlwind three weeks for Gutierrez, who was selected to the Marlins’ 40-man roster and pitched four innings of long relief to help spare their taxed bullpen. That four-inning appearance meant he’d be unavailable for several days, so the Fish designated him for assignment to clear space for another fresh arm in the ’pen. Miami surely hoped to be able to pass Gutierrez through waivers and keep him as a depth option, but the Brewers scooped him up off waivers on April 5. He was rocked for seven runs in 4 2/3 innings in his lone Triple-A start with Milwaukee, who designated Gutierrez themselves in order to bring fellow righty Tobias Myers up to the MLB roster.
Now with his third team in a span of three weeks, Gutierrez will hope to get into a groove in Worcester and pitch his way into a big league opportunity. The Red Sox lost Lucas Giolito for the season before Opening Day, and they’ve more recently placed Garrett Whitlock (oblique strain) and Nick Pivetta (flexor strain) on the injured list. That leaves the Sox with a rotation including Brayan Bello, Kutter Crawford, Tanner Houck and Cooper Criswell. Veteran Chase Anderson is on hand as a long man in the ’pen and could move into the rotation following Whitlock’s IL placement just yesterday. Gutierrez joins lefty Brandon Walter and righty Naoyuki Uwasawa as a rotation depth option on the 40-man roster.
Which Hot Or Cold Starts Are For Real?
The 2024 season is just a few weeks old. There’s still a lot of time for narratives to shift and plenty of exciting or deflating changes are surely coming up over the horizon. Nonetheless, the games in April count just as much as the games in September. Some clubs have already banked some valuable wins while others have put themselves in a real hole.
Looking at the FanGraphs Playoff Odds today and comparing them to where they were ahead of the Seoul Series, there are five clubs that have increased their postseason chances by more than 10%. Meanwhile, six clubs have seen their odds drop by more than 10%. Which of those are just small-sample blips and which are signs that the club’s talent level is meaningfully different than expected? Let’s take a glance.
Orioles
The defending champions of the American League East were given just a 51.8% chance of making it back to the postseason, per the FanGraphs odds from before any games had been played. They have started out 12-6 and seen their odds jump to 76.5% today, a difference of 24.7%.
Baltimore continues to get huge contributions from its young core and role players alike. Jackson Holliday’s big league career is out to a slow start, but others have picked up the slack, with Colton Cowser, Gunnar Henderson, Jordan Westburg and Cedric Mullins off and running. Even Ryan O’Hearn, who was acquired in a small cash deal from the Royals, continues to thrive. On the pitching side, Corbin Burnes has been the expected ace while Grayson Rodriguez continues to cement himself as a quality big league arm. There are some question marks at the back end with Dean Kremer and Cole Irvin out to wobbly starts, but Kyle Bradish and John Means are both on minor league rehab assignments and could rejoin the club soon.
The 18 games they have played so far have come against the Angels, Royals, Pirates, Red Sox, Brewers and Twins.
Royals
The Royals entered the season with playoff odds of just 13.1% but they have gone 12-7 so far, bumping themselves up to 33.2%, a difference of 20.1%.
An improved rotation gets a lot of the credit. Between last year’s trade for Cole Ragans, the offseason signings of Seth Lugo and Michael Wacha, as well as the emergence of Alec Marsh, it’s a whole new look alongside Brady Singer. None of those five have an ERA higher than 4.32 so far this year. On the position player side of things, Bobby Witt Jr. is further proving himself to be a superstar, while Salvador Perez and Vinnie Pasquantino are healthy and productive.
They have faced the Twins, Orioles, White Sox, Astros and Mets thus far.
Yankees
The Yanks had strong odds to begin with, starting out at 71.2%. A hot start of 13 wins and 6 losses has already bumped those all the way to 85.9%, a jump of 14.7%.
Health was a big factor for the Yankees last year, with players like Aaron Judge, Anthony Rizzo, DJ LeMahieu, Giancarlo Stanton, Nestor Cortes and Carlos Rodón all missing significant time. This year, Gerrit Cole is on the shelf, as is LeMahieu. But new face Juan Soto has been great so far, while Stanton, Cortes and Rodón are back in decent form.
The injuries or lack thereof will probably remain a focus for the months to come, especially with so many key players in their mid-30s. Last year, the club was 45-36 through the end of June, but mounting injuries led to them going 20-33 through July and August.
They have started their season by playing the Astros, Diamondbacks, Blue Jays, Marlins and Guardians.
Brewers
The National League Central is arguably the most up-for-grabs, with the five clubs fairly close in terms of talent. Despite being the reigning division champs, the Brewers were given just a 30.6% chance of making the postseason, below the Cardinals and Cubs. They’ve started out 11-6 and are now at 43.5%, a 12.9% bump.
There have been quite a few nice performance on the offensive side of things. Willy Adames had a bit of a down year in 2023 but is off to a good start in this campaign. Brice Turang and Blake Perkins are also putting up better numbers than last year. Joey Ortiz has done well since coming over from the Orioles in the Burnes trade. The loss of Burnes and the injury to Brandon Woodruff left the club without their co-aces, but Freddy Peralta has stepped up with a 2.55 ERA and 39.4% strikeout rate through his first three starts.
They have faced off against the Mets, Twins, Mariners, Reds, Orioles and Padres so far.
Mets
After a disastrous 2023 season and a relatively quiet winter, the Mets opened this year with their odds at 27.6%. A 10-8 start has already bumped them to 38.7%, an 11.1% difference.
They have been especially strong of late, as they started out 0-5 but have gone 10-3 over their last 13 contests. The bounceback plays on Luis Severino and Sean Manaea seem to be going well so far. Edwin Díaz is healthy again and already has four saves. On the position player side, Brett Baty seems to be taking a step forward. DJ Stewart is carrying over last year’s hot finish, and the Tyrone Taylor pickup looks like a nice move.
They have lined up against the Brewers, Tigers, Reds, Braves, Royals and Pirates.
Giants
The Giants added plenty of talent this winter and opened the season with playoff odds of 44.6%. But an 8-11 start has already dropped them to 34%, a difference of 10.6%.
Stretching out Jordan Hicks is going great so far, but Blake Snell showed a lot of rust in his first two starts after signing late in the offseason. On offense, acquisitions like Jung Hoo Lee, Matt Chapman and Nick Ahmed have produced subpar offense, and the same goes for incumbents like Mike Yastrzemski, Wilmer Flores and Thairo Estrada.
They have squared off against the Padres, Dodgers, Nationals, Rays and Marlins thus far.
Cardinals
Despite a dreadful 2023 campaign, expectations were high for the Cards coming into this year after they remade their rotation. But a middling start of 9-10 has dropped their playoff odds from 50.1% to 38.7%, a difference of 11.4%.
Injuries have been playing a notable role in the early going for the Cards, with Sonny Gray, Lars Nootbaar, Tommy Edman, Dylan Carlson and others missing time. The Lance Lynn signing looks good so far, as he has a 2.18 ERA through four starts, but Kyle Gibson is at 6.16. Both the veteran Paul Goldschmidt and the youngster Jordan Walker are out to terrible starts at the plate. The Cardinals’ long list of injuries opened up playing time for guys like Alec Burleson and Victor Scott II, who have each struggled immensely.
They have faced the Dodgers, Padres, Marlins, Phillies, Diamondbacks and Athletics to this point.
Mariners
The Mariners just missed the playoffs last year but still opened this season with a 60.8% chance of getting back there. A tepid start of 9-10 has seen those odds slide to 49.1%, a difference of 11.7%. Things were even more dire before they swept the Reds this week, as they were 6-10 prior to that.
The rotation has surprisingly been a problem thus far. An injury to Bryan Woo bumped Emerson Hancock into the rotation, but Hancock has an ERA of 7.98 through three starts. Each of Luis Castillo and George Kirby also have poor results, though those may be based on luck. Both have a high BABIP and low strand rate, so both have a FIP just above 3.00, about three runs lower than their ERA.
Julio Rodríguez is the biggest disappointment on the position player side. He is striking out at a 34.6% clip and walking just 5.1% of the time while still looking for his first home of the year, leading to a line of .219/.269/.260. Luke Raley, Mitch Garver and J.P. Crawford have also looked lost at the plate, with none of that trio posting a wRC+ higher than 75 so far.
The M’s have played the Red Sox, Guardians, Brewers, Blue Jays, Cubs and Reds.
Marlins
The Fish swam into the playoffs last year, their first postseason berth in a full season in 20 years. They followed that with an offseason mostly focused on overhauling their front office and player development system. A disastrous 4-15 start has already dropped this year’s playoff odds from 27.9% to 2.3%, a difference of 25.6%.
Injuries have been a huge factor, as the club’s former starting pitching surplus quickly became a deficit. Sandy Alcántara required Tommy John surgery last year, and Eury Pérez followed him down that path this year. Edward Cabrera and Braxton Garrett also missed some time due to shoulder troubles. A.J. Puk’s attempted move from the bullpen to the rotation is not going well so far, and Jesús Luzardo is struggling badly. Max Meyer was doing well but he was optioned to the minors to monitor his workload after he missed all of last year recovering from his own Tommy John procedure. The offense has been pretty bad across the board, as not a single member of the team has a wRC+ of 105 or higher. Jake Burger hit the injured list earlier this week, removing one of their top power bats from that already weak group.
They faced the Pirates, Angels, Cardinals, Yankees, Braves and Giants to start the year and have yet to win back-to-back games.
Astros
The Astros have been a powerhouse for years and opened this season with an 86.2% chance of returning to the postseason. But they have stumbled out of the gates this year with a record of 6-14, dropping their odds to 59.7%, a 26.5% drop.
Like some of the other clubs mentioned above, health has been a big factor here. Lance McCullers Jr. and Luis Garcia each underwent elbow surgery last year and are still rehabbing. So far this year, the Astros have lost Justin Verlander, José Urquidy and Framber Valdez to the IL, giving them a full rotation on the shelf. (Verlander will return tomorrow.)
With those prominent arms not around, others haven’t really picked up the slack. Hunter Brown has an ERA of 10.54 through four starts while J.P. France is at 7.08. Prospect Spencer Arrighetti was called up to fill in but has been tagged for nine runs over seven innings in his two outings. Josh Hader, Ryan Pressly and Bryan Abreu have surprisingly been bad out of the bullpen, with each having an ERA of 6.00 or higher. On offense, José Abreu has been awful, hitting .078/.158/.098. That performance got him bumped down in the lineup, and he’s been ceding playing time to Jon Singleton lately.
The Astros began the year playing the Yankees, Blue Jays, Rangers, Royals and Braves.
Twins
The Twins are the reigning champs in the American League Central but made some budget cuts this winter. Their 6-11 start has moved their playoff odds from 66% to 38.6%, a shift of 27.4%.
Once again, injuries are a big part of the story here. Oft-injured Royce Lewis went down with a quad strain on Opening Day, and Carlos Correa followed him later, subtracting the club’s left side of the infield. The only guys with at least 30 plate appearances and a wRC+ above 100 are Ryan Jeffers, Alex Kirilloff and the currently-injured Correa. Multiple injured relievers, most notably Jhoan Durán, have left the bullpen shorthanded.
In the rotation, the club lost Sonny Gray, Kenta Maeda and Tyler Mahle from last year’s club, but their main attempt at replacing those guys was to acquire Anthony DeSclafani on the heels of a pair of injury-wrecked seasons. He required flexor tendon surgery and will miss the rest of the year. The incumbents haven’t been much help. Chris Paddack, Louie Varland and Bailey Ober each have an ERA above 6.50, though Ober has rebounded after being shelled for eight runs in just 1 1/3 innings in his season debut.
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Some of these are probably just flukes, and the results will even out over the rest of the season, but some of these clubs might be showing us who they really are. Which ones do you believe in? Have your say in the polls below, the first one for the hot starts and the second one for the cold starts. (Note: you can select multiple options in each poll.)
Brewers Outright Kevin Herget
Right-hander Kevin Herget has cleared waivers and been outrighted by the Brewers to Triple-A Nashville, per Todd Rosiak of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. The Brewers had designated the righty for assignment on the weekend.
Herget, 33, signed a minor league deal with the Brewers in the offseason. He had his contract selected April 9 and was bounced off the roster five days later without making an appearance. Prior to joining the big league club, he made four scoreless appearances in Triple-A, striking out five batters while only issuing one walk. He also had two scoreless appearances in Spring Training.
Though he didn’t get into a big league game with the Brewers, he has 31 1/3 innings of major league experience with the Rays and Reds. He has a 5.74 earned run average in that time, striking out just 12.6% of batters faced but limiting walks to a tiny rate of 4.4%. His work in the minors has naturally been more intriguing. Dating back to the start of 2021, he has tossed 230 2/3 Triple-A innings with a 3.86 ERA, 24.1% strikeout rate and 6.2% walk rate.
Herget has been outrighted before in his career, which gives him the right to reject this outright assignment and elect free agency. It’s not yet clear whether he’s chosen to report to Nashville or head back out to the open market.
Brewers Select Tobias Myers, Designate Vladimir Gutierrez For Assignment
The Brewers announced that they have selected the contract of right-hander Tobias Myers. In corresponding moves, they optioned left-hander Jared Koenig to Triple-A Nashville and designated right-hander Vladimir Gutierrez for assignment.
Myers, 25, will be making his major league debut as soon as he gets into a game, though he took quite a circuitous route to get here. Drafted by the Orioles way back in 2016, he was traded to the Rays the following year as the O’s acquired Tim Beckham. Ahead of the 2021 Rule 5 deadline, he was flipped to Cleveland in exchange for Junior Caminero and then added to Cleveland’s 40-man roster. Myers was designated for assignment in July of 2022, getting traded to the Giants for cash. He was later claimed off waivers by the White Sox, though that club outrighted him off their roster towards the end of the 2022 season. He reached minor league free agency and signed a minor league deal with the Brewers prior to 2023.
Along that winding road, he saw his prospect stock rise and fall. Baseball America considered him the Rays’ #15 prospect going into 2018, which was on the heels of a strong 2017 performance wherein Myers tossed 56 minors league innings with a 3.54 earned run average, 31.9% strikeout rate and 4.4% walk rate. Were in not for a very unlucky 52.1% strand rate, his performance would have been even better, which is why his FIP was a tiny 1.81.
But his strikeout-to-walk ratios were less impressive in the two following two seasons. He had a combed 3.05 ERA over 2018 and 2019 but with a subpar 18.7% strikeout rate and average-ish 8.1% walk rate. The minors were canceled by the pandemic in 2020 but Myers bounced back somewhat in 2021. He tossed 117 2/3 innings over 25 outings, 22 starts, with a 3.90 ERA, 30.5% strikeout rate and 5.8% walk rate. It was then that he was traded to the Guards for Caminero and BA ranked him the #23 prospect in Cleveland’s system.
But in 2022, as he bounced to the Guardians, Giants and White Sox, he tossed 76 innings on the farm with a ghastly 7.82 ERA, striking out just 14.2% of opponents while giving them free passes at a 13.5% clip.
With the Brewers last year, he improved in terms of strikeouts and walks but the long ball was an issue. He threw 140 2/3 frames with a 29.3% strikeout rate and 7.7% walk rate, but the 30 home runs allowed led to a 4.93 ERA. So far this year, he’s made three Triple-A starts with a 1.84 ERA in that small sample.
Given the inconsistency, it’s hard to know what to expect from Myers at this point, but the Brewers have largely been getting decent results out of him in the past year-plus. Since he’s stretched out, he can give the club a bit of length. He has a couple of options and can provide the club with some roster flexibility well into the future if he continues to hang onto his 40-man spot.
Gutierrez, 28, was claimed off waivers by the Brewers less than two weeks ago. He was optioned to Triple-A and made two appearances on the farm before getting bumped off the 40-man roster today. Milwaukee will have one week to trade him or pass him through waivers.
He was once a highly-touted prospect himself but has a 5.47 ERA through 154 2/3 major league innings thus far, mostly with the Reds. He missed most of 2023 while recovering from Tommy John surgery and was outrighted by the Reds at season’s end. He signed a minor league deal with the Marlins this winter and was selected to the roster but was designated for assignment after one appearance, which led him to the Brewers via the aforementioned waiver claim.
He could perhaps garner interest from other clubs, either due to his previous prospect pedigree or the various injuries piling up around the league or both. The fact that Gutierrez still has a couple of options means he won’t even need an active roster spot.
