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Aaron Ashby

Aaron Ashby Shut Down For Two Weeks, Expects To Build Back Up As Starter

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Brewers southpaw Aaron Ashby has been sidelined by an oblique strain that’s likely to keep him on the shelf to begin the season, but the lefty did get some good news on his latest wave of imaging. Per Adam McCalvy of MLB.com, the second opinion on Ashby’s most recent MRI was more favorable than the first. He’ll be shut down for two weeks and then anticipates that he’ll resume building up as a starter.

That the plan for him is to continue stretching out as a starter isn’t a huge surprise, given Milwaukee’s need for rotation depth. The Brewers just inked Jose Quintana on a one-year deal, but they also lost lefty DL Hall to the 60-day injured list and will be without Brandon Woodruff for the beginning of the season as he continues a slow build back from a significant 2023 shoulder surgery.

At present, the Milwaukee rotation includes Freddy Peralta, Aaron Civale, Nestor Cortes, Tobias Myers and Quintana. The Brewers also signed veteran swingman Tyler Alexander to a one-year deal last month, but the Quintana signing likely pushed him to the bullpen.

Depth options beyond that group are inexperienced. Righties Logan Henderson and Chad Patrick are on the 40-man roster but have yet to make their MLB debuts. Young righty Carlos Rodriguez has a dozen MLB frames to his credit. Fellow right-hander Elvin Rodriguez, who signed after a nice showing as a reliever in Japan, has all of 33 MLB innings. Non-roster options include Bruce Zimmermann and Thomas Pannone, neither of whom has had a sustained run of success in the majors. Top prospect Jacob Misiorowski will probably get a look in 2025, but he’s a 2022 second-rounder with only 170 pro innings to his name — just 17 of them coming in Triple-A.

It seems as though Ashby could be throwing before the end of spring training and thus could head out on a Triple-A rehab assignment early in the season. A mid- or late-April return seems plausible, barring setbacks. Ashby himself hasn’t quite solidified a spot in the majors, though he pitched quite well in 28 1/3 innings last year — mostly in relief. He’s oscillated between the rotation and the bullpen in Milwaukee through parts of three MLB seasons over a four-year span.

Entering the 2021 season, Ashby was among the Brewers’ top-ranked prospects. He showed promise in his rookie campaign, posting a pedestrian 4.55 ERA in 31 2/3 innings but punching out better than 29% of his opponents against a serviceable 9% walk rate. For a 23-year-old who’d just set down a gaudy 36% of his Triple-A opponents on strikes, it was a solid debut.

Ashby continued down a similar track in 2022. Though he was sporting a mid-4.00s ERA in July, he’d turned in excellent strikeout numbers and moved into the Milwaukee rotation. The Brewers and Ashby agreed to a five-year, $20.5MM extension that summer, which looked to lock the southpaw in as a foundational piece of the pitching staff.

As is too often the case for young pitchers, injuries intervened. Ashby hit the injured list with shoulder inflammation just one month after signing his contract. He returned for the final couple weeks of the season and pitched quite well. Further shoulder woes surfaced in 2023, however, and he missed most of the season with an impingement and a tear in his labrum.

Despite debuting in 2021, Ashby has only 167 1/3 big league innings. Though he’s yet to claim a long-term spot in the rotation, the fact that he’ll build back up as a starter once his oblique injury calms down suggests that he could get that opportunity this year. Presumably, a healthy Ashby would be one of the first names called if the Brewers incur an injury elsewhere following his return (depending on Woodruff’s status at that time). Ashby is still under contract through 2027, and the team holds a pair of club options on him for 2028 and 2029.

Brewers Place DL Hall On 60-Day Injured List

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The Brewers announced that left-hander DL Hall has been placed on the 60-day injured list. Adam McCalvy of MLB.com was among those to relay the news. That means Hall has been officially ruled out until late May at the earliest. That’s the corresponding move to open a roster spot for lefty Jose Quintana, who has now been officially signed.

Back on February 12th, it was reported that Hall had a lat strain and was going to be shut down for at least the next two weeks. It has now been three weeks since that reporting with little information coming out about his progress. About a week ago, McCalvy relayed that Hall had not even been cleared to start playing catch. Manager Pat Murphy tells McCalvy today that Hall is expected to resume playing catch at the end of this week.

Given the sluggish progress and this transaction, it seems the Brewers don’t expect Hall to return anytime soon. Players can be placed on the 60-day IL once pitchers and catchers report to camp but the clock doesn’t start ticking until Opening Day, so Hall won’t be eligible for reinstatement until late May even in a best-case scenario.

It’s an unfortunate development for Hall, who hasn’t been able to build a decent workload. He still doesn’t have a 100-inning season on his track record as a professional. With the Orioles in 2022 and 2023, they shuttled him between the majors and minors as well as the rotation and the bullpen. He was traded to the Brewers as part of the Corbin Burnes deal ahead of the 2024 season and Milwaukee mostly deployed him as a starter last year, but a knee sprain capped him at 84 frames, majors and minors combined.

The Brewers still have hope of Hall becoming a viable starter one day, given that he’s a former top 100 prospect and was a key part of the Burnes deal. He could still have a nice season in 2025 but starting it with a lengthy IL stint isn’t ideal.

For the Brewers, they will have some rotation question marks to start the season, though the Quintana signing helps to solidify the group. Alongside Quintana will be Freddy Peralta, Tobias Myers, Aaron Civale and Nestor Cortes. They will add Brandon Woodruff in there at some point, though his timeline is unclear after he spent 2024 recovering from shoulder surgery. Aaron Ashby has an oblique strain and is still getting tested, per Curt Hogg of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, but seems likely to start the season on the IL. Robert Gasser is already on the 60-day IL as he recovers from last year’s Tommy John surgery.

Behind the front five, the Brewers currently have Logan Henderson, Carlos Rodríguez, Chad Patrick and Elvin Rodríguez as healthy options on the 40-man roster. However, Henderson and Patrick have no major league experience while the Rodríguezes have just 45 1/3 big league innings combined. Jacob Misiorowski is one of the top prospects in baseball but isn’t on the 40-man and walked 14.4% of batters faced last year.

Aaron Ashby Headed For Imaging On Oblique Strain

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Brewers left-hander Aaron Ashby departed today’s Spring Training start in the second inning due to injury. After the game, manager Pat Murphy told Todd Rosiak of the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel that the southpaw suffered an oblique strain. Murphy indicated that early tests suggest the injury will not necessitate a months-long absence. However, a firm timetable won’t be known until Ashby goes for further testing tomorrow.

It’s a setback in the 26-year-old’s efforts to secure a rotation spot. Ashby was probably ticketed for the bullpen following the team’s agreement with Jose Quintana on a $4.25MM free agent deal. Quintana can slot behind Freddy Peralta and alongside Nestor Cortes, Tobias Myers and Aaron Civale in the Opening Day rotation. Ashby may have been the top depth arm in the event that anyone else suffered a Spring Training injury.  The Brewers don’t expect Brandon Woodruff to be ready for Opening Day after he lost the 2024 season to shoulder surgery. DL Hall suffered a lat strain last month and will be down for several weeks.

Any kind of significant oblique issue would ensure Ashby begins the season on the injured list as well. That’d leave swingman Tyler Alexander as the only healthy depth starter on the 40-man roster who has more than a few weeks of major league service. Inexperienced pitchers Carlos Rodriguez, Chad Patrick, Logan Henderson and Elvin Rodriguez are on the 40-man. Bruce Zimmermann and Thomas Pannone are in camp as non-roster invitees.

Even if he didn’t crack the rotation, a healthy Ashby would probably begin the season in the bullpen. He impressed in a multi-inning relief role last year. Ashby turned in a 2.86 earned run average across 28 1/3 innings. He fanned 27.7% of opponents while getting ground-balls at a massive 58.6% clip. His lone playoff appearance was a disaster — he allowed all five baserunners to reach in his outing in the Wild Card Series against the Mets — but his MLB regular season numbers were strong. Few pitchers have the ability to get both whiffs and grounders at the rates that he can.

That upside convinced the Brewers to sign the former fourth-round pick to a $20.5MM extension three years ago. While he continues to flash a significant ceiling, he has yet to find consistency. That’s mostly on account of injury. Ashby battled shoulder problems almost immediately after signing the extension in July 2022. He underwent an arthroscopic shoulder procedure the following April that cost him the entire ’23 season. He returned to health last season but could not find the strike zone with any kind of regularity while working as a starter in Triple-A.

Ashby was torched for more than eight earned runs per nine across 84 minor league frames, largely because of an untenable 17.4% walk rate. He started 14 of his 25 appearances. His strong finish at the MLB level came in 1-2 inning stints out of the bullpen. Ashby’s long-term future might well be in relief, but Murphy said at the start of the offseason that Milwaukee wasn’t willing to abandon hope of him sticking as a starter.

Looking At The Brewers’ Rotation Depth Options

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The Brewers have won the National League Central two years in a row and three of the last four. They will be looking to defend that title in 2025 but might face a steeper challenge than in years past. The Cubs have had an aggressive offseason, adding Kyle Tucker, Matthew Boyd, Ryan Pressly, Ryan Brasier and more. The Reds added Brady Singer, Gavin Lux, Austin Hays and will be getting several players back from injury. The Pirates have had a quiet winter but have a rotation loaded with young talent, fronted by Paul Skenes and Jared Jones. The Cardinals planned to do a teardown but ended up standing pat, so they’re going into the year with a very similar roster to the one that finished above .500 last year.

Milwaukee hasn’t done a lot to remake its roster relative to last year. They have added Nestor Cortes and Caleb Durbin but lost Willy Adames, Devin Williams and others. Whether the team is better or worse than last year is debatable.

The rotation wasn’t a strength in 2024. Their starters put up a collective 4.09 earned run average, putting them 17th out of the 30 teams in the league. Their bullpen was one of the best, however. Their relievers had a collective ERA of 3.11, second only to the Guardians, which helped the team cruise to that division title. That was despite Williams being injured for much of the year.

Going into 2025, the rotation looks like it could be in a similar situation overall, though with some personnel changes. Of the seven players that made at least nine starts for the club last year, four of them are gone. Frankie Montas and Joe Ross hit free agency at season’s end, the former by declining a mutual option. Bryse Wilson was outrighted and Colin Rea had a club option turned down, so they also hit the open market as well.

Freddy Peralta, Tobias Myers and Aaron Civale are the three holdovers. Cortes was brought in from the Yankees as part of the Williams trade. In an interview this week with Todd Rosiak of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, manager Pat Murphy confirmed that those four make up his rotation core to start the season. Brandon Woodruff, who missed 2024 recovering from shoulder surgery, will be in there at some point but probably won’t be ready by Opening Day.

“I would think those four guys are [penciled in],” Murphy said, “and you can put Woody in there, too. But you can’t have him ready to start the season; he probably won’t be. But I think it’s pretty safe to say that those five guys are starters that, when healthy, are going to get opportunities.”

Taking things easy with Woodruff makes sense after his lost season, but that means the club will likely have to reach into its depth. Perhaps that will only be for a short time, but injuries are inevitable over the course of a season. For the long term, the need will be even greater. Civale and Cortes are both slated to be free agents after the upcoming season. Woodruff will certainly join them, as his deal has a $20MM mutual option for 2026 with a $10MM buyout. That was basically designed so that he would re-sign but with the club able to kick most of the payment down the line until the end of 2025. Peralta can be retained for 2026 via an affordable $8MM club option but is slated for free agency after that.

That means Myers is the only guy slated to still be on the roster when November of 2026 rolls around. Even he is not a lock to keep a spot going forward, as his strong 2024 season came after several years of poor minor league numbers. In short, the long-term rotation is wide open. Can the Brewers fill some of that in with guys already in the system? Let’s take a look at some of the options.

Aaron Ashby

Ashby, 27 in May, seemed like a potential rotation building block a few years ago. He tossed 139 innings in a swing role over the 2021 and 2022 seasons. His 4.47 ERA wasn’t especially impressive but his 27.1% strikeout rate, 9.7% walk rate and 57.8% ground ball rate seemed like a solid recipe for success.

The Brewers were intrigued enough to make a bet on the lefty, signing him to a five-year deal during the 2022 campaign which guaranteed him $20.5MM and also came with club options for 2028 and 2029.

Unfortunately, shoulder problems got in the way. Arthroscopic surgery wiped out his 2023 season. He returned last year and was kept mostly in a relief role, but with some good results. Down the stretch, he tossed 19 2/3 innings over 12 appearances with a 1.37 ERA, 36.8% strikeout rate, 3.9% walk rate and 51.1% ground ball rate.

With those numbers, it might be tempting to keep him in a bullpen role, but the club seems interested in stretching him out. Back in November, Murphy said the club still hopes to see what Ashby can do as a starter. He still has one option year and can be sent to the minors if the club would like.

DL Hall

Hall, 26, was a first-round pick of the Orioles in 2017 and went on to be a top 100 prospect. He came to the Brewers as part of the Corbin Burnes trade last offseason. He hasn’t lived up to that prospect hype just yet.

He has pitched in the past three seasons but logged only 76 innings. His 4.74 ERA doesn’t impress but his 25.1% strikeout rate, 9.4% walk rate and 46.5% ground ball rate make for a decent mixture. A left knee sprain hobbled him last year, limiting him to just 84 frames between the majors and minors. In 2022 and 2023, the Orioles shuttled him between the majors and the minors, as well as moving him between starting to relieving. He tossed 98 innings in 2022 between the majors and minors, then 71 1/3 in 2023. His minor league work has generally featured big strikeout numbers but also plenty of walks.

Hall is still a work in progress but the Brewers probably don’t want to give up on him, given the upside here. Like Ashby, he has one option year remaining, so pitching out of the Triple-A rotation isn’t off the table. He has one year and 74 days of service time, meaning he is currently slated for five years of club control, though a lengthy optional assignment could push that to six. Either way, he’s cheap and controllable for a long time to come.

Robert Gasser

Gasser, 26 in May, won’t be an option in the short term but is definitely part of the long-term plans. A former top 100 prospect, he debuted with a splash last year by posting a 2.57 ERA in his first five big league starts. Unfortunately, he required Tommy John surgery in June, wiping out the second half of his 2024. He’s now slated to miss most or perhaps all of 2025. He has less than a year of service time at the moment and the Brewers therefore have six years of club control over him.

Jacob Misiorowski

Misiorowski, 23 in April, is not yet on the 40-man roster but is one of the top pitching prospects in the league. He reached as high as Triple-A last year, though the club eased off his workload by having him pitch shorter stints out of the bullpen to finish the year. Between Double-A and Triple-A, he tossed 97 1/3 innings on the year with a 3.33 ERA. He struck out 30.5% of hitters and got grounders at a 45.8% clip but also gave out walks 14.4% of the time. Though the club eased off the gas, that innings total is still his personal high thus far.

The righty is clearly going to factor into the mix at some point, but there’s clearly still some development going on. 2025 will likely be about reining in the control and getting the workload beyond the 100-inning mark, but it’s entirely possible that he throws some big league innings this year.

Elvin Rodríguez

Rodríguez, 27 in March, is a wild card at the moment. He spent 2024 in a multi-inning role for the Yakult Swallows in Japan. He logged 45 innings over 32 appearances with a 1.80 ERA, 24% strikeout rate and 6.5% walk rate. Whether the Brewers view him more as a starter or a reliever is unknown.

Carlos Rodríguez

Rodríguez, 23, made a limited MLB debut last year. He tossed 12 1/3 innings over three starts with a 7.30 ERA. Over the past three years, he has logged 365 2/3 innings on the farm with a 3.49 ERA, 27.4% strikeout rate and 10.4% walk rate. Most prospect evaluators consider him a capable back-end starter but he’s still young and has a couple of options remaining, so he’ll likely be in the Triple-A rotation until circumstances change.

Chad Patrick/Logan Henderson

These two were each just added to the 40-man roster in November, to keep them out of the Rule 5 draft. Henderson, 23, is considered more of a legit prospect but he is still a question mark. Elbow surgery limited him to just 13 2/3 innings in 2022. He got that up to 78 2/3 in 2023 and then 81 1/3 last year. His minor league numbers are strong overall, with a 3.11 ERA, 34.1% strikeout rate and 6.9% walk rate. However, he mostly gets by with a fastball/changeup mix that leads some to predict he’ll end up in the bullpen. Patrick is considered more of a depth/spot starter.

Bruce Zimmermann/Thomas Pannone/Easton McGee

These three signed minor league deals with the club this offseason. They all have a bit of major league experience and give the club some non-roster depth. Zimmermann has a 5.57 ERA in 158 1/3 innings and Pannone a 5.46 ERA in 118 2/3 innings, while McGee hasn’t allowed a run in his 9 2/3 innings.

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Though the Woodruff timeline creates some uncertainty, there are plenty of intriguing options here for the short term. But as mentioned, the Brewers will likely see three starters departing at the end of the year and a fourth after 2026. Ideally, guys like Ashby, Hall, Misiorowski and Gasser would step up take those spots, because the club usually doesn’t have a lot of spending power for bringing in free agents. That makes 2025 a key season in Milwaukee, since their future rotation plans are completely in flux.

Brewers Manager Discusses Rotation Options

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The Brewers’ season came to a heartbreaking end last week, as they carried a lead into the ninth inning of their deciding game against the Mets in the Wild Card round, but the Mets put together a late rally and took the series. For Milwaukee, that means the focus has now shifted to 2025 and manager Pat Murphy recently discussed some topics related to the roster, with Curt Hogg rounding them up in a piece for the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel.

One of the players Murphy discusses was Aaron Ashby. The lefty once looked like a budding starting before getting derailed by shoulder issues. He finished 2024 on a strong note out of the bullpen but it seems the skipper hasn’t given up on the possibility of the southpaw being a rotation option again in the future.

“If you’re asking me today if he belongs in that late inning role, I’d say no,” Murphy said. “I’d say he’s more of a candidate to throw more innings because his stuff is pretty special and there’s a variety there. That’s going to be discussed, the path. And it has to be player-driven. The player has to want certain things or at least be in a healthy discussion about it.”

Ashby showed his potential when he first came up to the big leagues. Over the 2021 and 2022 seasons, he tossed 139 innings in a swing role, making 23 starts and 17 relief appearances. He allowed 4.47 earned runs per nine innings but with better peripherals. He struck out 27.1% of batters faced, gave out walks at a 9.7% rate and kept balls in play on the ground at a 57.8% clip.

The Brewers clearly believed in what was ahead for Ashby, as they signed him to an extension during that 2022 campaign. The five-year deal guaranteed him $20.5MM and also came with club options for 2028 and 2029, valued at $9MM and $13MM respectively, with a $1MM buyout on the first one.

Unfortunately, the first year of that deal was wasted. Ashby dealt with shoulder problems in 2023 and eventually required arthroscopic surgery, not pitching in the majors at all. Here in 2024, Ashby had been relegated to a depth option. He spent most of the first half on optional assignment, being recalled twice to make spot starts.

In late August, Ashby was recalled from the minors and added to the Milwaukee bullpen. He tossed 19 2/3 innings over 12 appearances down the stretch, with excellent results. He had a 1.37 ERA, 36.8% strikeout rate, 3.9% walk rate and 51.1% ground ball rate.

Given those excellent results, there might be some temptation to just keep Ashby in a relief role, but it’s also understandable that the Brewers haven’t given up on the rotation path. A solid starter is more useful to a club than a good reliever, generally speaking, and the Brewers should be able to put together a bullpen without Ashby’s contributions. Even if Devin Williams is traded, which seems to be on the table, Milwaukee can turn to guys like Trevor Megill, Joel Payamps, Bryan Hudson and Jared Koenig for key bullpen roles.

The variety that Murphy referred to is indeed present, as Ashby threw five different pitches in the majors this year: a four-seamer, sinker, changeup, curveball and slider. It seems he had a bit of rust in harnessing that arsenal while getting over his lost season in 2023, as he walked 17.4% of batters faced in Triple-A this year while posting an 8.04 ERA. But as mentioned, he was able to get in a good grove by the end of the year.

Going forward, it seems Ashby can still try to carve out a rotation role if he wants one. Also in the rotation mix will be Tobias Myers, who Murphy views as a lock for a job. “In my thoughts, he’s a definite,” Murphy said. “But he’s got to go do it in the offseason. He’s got to come back out, recapture that mentality and recapture the arsenal, which isn’t always easy.”

It’s unsurprising that Myers has earned some job security after his strong performance in 2024. He pitched 138 innings for the Brewers this year with a flat 3.00 ERA. He had a 22.3% strikeout rate, 6.3% walk rate and 37.6% ground ball rate. He benefitted a bit from a .282 batting average on balls in play and 81.1% strand rate, but even his 3.91 FIP and 3.99 SIERA suggest he would have been solid without as much favor from the baseball gods.

There are some questions for the Brewers to answer in their rotation going forward. Freddy Peralta will be locked into one spot and it seems Myers will as well. Colin Rea posted a 4.29 ERA this year and the Brewers have a $5.5MM club option for 2025 with a $1MM buyout. That makes it a net $4.5MM decision, which is a bargain for a solid back-end starter. Guys like Lance Lynn, Kyle Gibson and Luis Severino got one-year deals worth between $11MM and $13MM last offseason. The Brewers themselves gave $8.5MM to Wade Miley, though he unfortunately required Tommy John surgery early in the year.

Aaron Civale can be retained for 2025 but he will cost more than Rea. He’s eligible for arbitration and MLBTR contributor Matt Swartz projects him for a salary of $8MM next year. Given the aforementioned prices for back-end starters, that’s reasonable for Civale, who had a 4.36 ERA in 31 starts this year. But the Brewers generally work with tight budgets and might have less TV revenue coming in next year, so perhaps they might explore the trade market.

DL Hall is another option, as he worked both out of the rotation and bullpen in 2024. But he missed a lot of time due to a left knee sprain and wasn’t able to pile up a big sample of work. He finished the year with a 5.02 ERA across seven starts and six relief appearances.

Another big question mark will be Brandon Woodruff, who missed all of 2024 recovering from shoulder surgery. He’s under contract for 2025 but he’ll be a great unknown for next year, likely until spring training rolls around. Robert Gasser could return late next year after undergoing UCL surgery a few months ago. Jacob Misiorowski is one of the best pitching prospects in the league and he finished the year at Triple-A, but he also walked 14.4% of batters faced on the year and might still need some fine tuning.

Between Peralta, Myers, Woodruff, Ashby, Hall, Rea, Civale and Misiorowski, the Brewers have eight potential rotation options, though the long winter ahead could change the picture via additions or subtractions.

Brewers Select James Meeker

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The Brewers announced that they have selected the contract of right-hander James Meeker. Left-hander Aaron Ashby was optioned to Triple-A Nashville in a corresponding move. The club already had a vacancy on its 40-man roster, which is now full.

Meeker makes it to the big leagues for the first time at an unusually old age, as he turned 29 in March. That’s a reflection of his unusual path to get to the majors. He pitched for the University of Delaware through 2018 but didn’t get drafted and headed to the Indy Ball circuit. He bounced around for a few years but impressed the Brewers enough to get a minor league deal late in 2021.

In 2022, he tossed 64 1/3 innings between High-A and Double-A, allowing just 2.38 earned runs per nine frames. He only struck out 21.3% of batters faced but limited walks to a 6.3% clip and got grounders on roughly half the balls that opponents put in play.

Last year, the results were fairly similar. He tossed 93 innings over 36 appearances in Double-A and Triple-A, including eight starts in an ill-fated move to the rotation. Despite some poor results in those starts, he still finished the year with a 3.39 ERA, 20.6% strikeout rate, 3.8% walk rate and lots of grounders again.

Here in 2024, he has again split his time between Double-A and Triple-A. He has 27 innings on the year between those two levels with a 2.67 ERA. His walk rate has jumped to 10.9% but he’s also getting more punchouts, up to 27.3%, while still keeping the ball on the ground. He’ll give the club an extra arm in the bullpen and will be making his major league debut as soon as he gets into a game.

The Brewers have placed Joe Ross and Robert Gasser on the injured list in the past few weeks, thinning their rotation depth. Ashby was recalled a couple of days ago to make a spot start but has quickly been sent down to get a fresh arm onto the big league staff.

Tobias Myers is taking the ball tonight with Freddy Peralta, Bryse Wilson and Colin Rea likely to follow in the days to come. They would need a fifth starter by Tuesday, unless they plan to do some kind of bullpen game. Janson Junk was just optioned recently and there’s a 15-day minimum before he’s allowed to return, unless directly replacing a player going on the IL. Ashby is now in a similar position. Jakob Junis is on a rehab assignment but only tossed two innings in his first outing and may be built up further before being reinstated. Prospect Jacob Misiorowski is pitching well in the minors but hasn’t yet reached Triple-A and isn’t on the 40-man roster.

Brewers Place Robert Gasser On Injured List

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1:40pm: Gasser is on his way to Los Angeles to meet with Dr. Neal ElAttrache for a second opinion, per Rosiak on X.

1:05pm: The Brewers announced today that they have recalled left-hander Aaron Ashby and right-hander Tobias Myers from Triple-A Nashville. Lefty Robert Gasser has been placed on the 15-day injured list, retroactive to June 2, with a left flexor strain while right-hander Janson Junk was optioned to Triple-A Nashville.

Gasser, 25, started on Saturday but he felt tight and sore in his elbow after that start. Manager Pat Murphy gave a positive update yesterday, per Todd Rosiak of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel on X. “There’s a possibility he could miss some time,” Murphy said. “But from the first MRI, I guess it looks pretty normal.”

Despite that perspective, it seems that either the club decided to be cautious and let Gasser’s arm heal up or further testing revealed something more concerning. It’s unclear exactly how long the club currently expects him to be out of action at this point, but he’ll miss at least a couple of turns through the rotation while on the IL.

An injury to a pitcher’s throwing elbow is always a concern but it’s an unfortunate development for the Brewers even if Gasser is only slated for a short stint on the IL. He has performed well in his first five career starts with a 2.57 earned run average thus far. His acclimation to the major leagues will now be put on pause and the team will lose yet another rotation option.

Brandon Woodruff is going to spend the entire season on the injured list after last year’s shoulder surgery. Wade Miley had Tommy John surgery and won’t be able to return this year. Jakob Junis initially went on the IL due to a shoulder impingement but had his return delayed when he was hit by a batted ball during batting practice. DL Hall is out due to a knee sprain and Joe Ross due to a strained lower back.

Despite all the rotation injuries, the club is 36-25 and six games up on the Cubs in the National League Central. Ashby is going to take the ball today and the club is off tomorrow. They can then turn to Freddy Peralta, Bryse Wilson and Colin Rea through the weekend but will need to figure out how to construct their rotation beyond that.

Junis started a rehab assignment last night but only tossed two innings and probably needs a few more outings before rejoining the big league club. Ashby could stick around but he has an ERA of 6.80 in Triple-A this year and his one previous MLB start saw him allow four earned runs in 3 2/3 innings. Myers has made seven appearances for the big league club this year but with a 5.40 ERA in those.

Given the rotation uncertainty and the club’s position in the standings, it seems highly likely they will be looking for starting pitching prior to the trade deadline at the end of July. Quick returns from Junis, Gasser and some others would obviously improve the situation but there should be plenty of room for additions. Peralta is a legit playoff game starter but Wilson just moved in from the bullpen this year while Rea is a journeyman who’s about to turn 34 years old and only striking out 15.8% of opponents.

There are still plenty of teams trying to suss out their deadline approach but there are some clear sellers right now. The White Sox are the worst team in baseball and should be marketing Erick Fedde, while Garrett Crochet could be available as well. The Marlins have already started selling and could make Jesús Luzardo or Trevor Rogers available. The Angels have Tyler Anderson, Griffin Canning and Patrick Sandoval as plausible trade candidates. Plenty of other pitchers could become available depending on how clubs like the Tigers, Blue Jays, Mets, Astros and others fare in the weeks to come.

Brewers Select Kevin Herget, Option Aaron Ashby

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The Brewers announced that they have selected the contract of right-hander Kevin Herget, with left-hander Aaron Ashby optioned in a corresponding move. To open a spot on the 40-man roster, righty Devin Williams was transferred to the 60-day injured list. It was reported a few weeks ago that Williams has stress fractures in his back and will be out of action for about three months.

Herget, 33, has logged big league time in each of the past two seasons, spending the 2022 campaign in the Rays organization and the 2023 season with the Reds. He’s posted a 5.74 ERA in 31 1/3 MLB frames, with a 12.6% strikeout rate that’s only a bit more than half the league average but an outstanding 4.4% walk rate. Herget delivered pedestrian numbers in 47 1/3 Triple-A innings with the Reds’ top affiliate last season but was excellent in Triple-A with the 2022 Rays when he racked up 97 1/3 frames with a 2.95 ERA, 24.4% strikeout rate and pristine 3.9% walk rate.

Though Herget doesn’t throw hard (92.6 mph average fastball) or miss many bats, his command is sharp. He’s only walked 6% of the hitters he’s faced in pro ball, including just 6.3% in parts of seven Triple-A seasons. He’s walked only one of his 17 opponents (5.8%) in 4 1/3 shutout innings to start the Triple-A season with the Brewers’ affiliate in Nashville. Herget also has a pair of minor league options remaining, so if the Brewers decide this will be a short stint in the big league bullpen, he can be sent back to Nashville without first needing to clear waivers.

Optioning Ashby is the latest discouraging development in what’s been a frustrating couple of years for the former top prospect. The now-25-year-old lefty debuted late in the 2021 season and impressed down the stretch, fanning nearly 30% of his opponents in 31 2/3 innings. Ashby split the 2022 season between the Brewers’ rotation and bullpen, pitching quite well through the season’s first few months — so much so that Milwaukee signed him to a five-year, $20.5MM contract extension.

That hasn’t gone nearly as well as hoped. Ashby posted a decent 4.23 ERA with a 4.31 FIP and much more promising 3.44 SIERA in his final 38 1/3 innings that season. He fanned 26.1% of his opponents, issued walks at a 9.1% clip and kept the ball on the ground at a 57.4% rate in ’22 following the extension.

Shoulder troubles popped up in 2023, however, eventually requiring arthroscopic surgery. Ashby wound up pitching just seven innings all season — all of which came in the minors. He returned this season but was rocked for 11 runs (nine earned) on 14 hits and five walks with seven punchouts in just 8 1/3 spring innings. His regular season began with a the left-hander yielding eight runs (four earned) on six hits and a pair of walks in 3 2/3 innings. Ashby averaged 96.5 mph on his sinker in 2021 and 95.8 mph in 2022; he’s sitting at just 93.8 mph to begin the current season.

The Brewers are surely still hopeful that Ashby can rebound to an extent. Whether he factors into the rotation or eventually settles in as a bullpen piece, the former fourth-round pick has shown clear ability to miss bats and generate grounders at a premium level. Command has long been an issue, and Ashby probably won’t ever excel in that regard, but he could still play a prominent role on the team if he can get back to the 27.1% strikeout rate, 12.6% swinging-strike rate and 34.1% opponents’ chase rate he displayed in 2021-22.

Under the terms of that previously mentioned contract extension, Ashby is being paid $1.25MM in 2024. He’s owed salaries of $3.25MM, $5.5MM and $7.5MM from 2025-27, and Milwaukee has club options on what would’ve been his first two free agent seasons: $9MM in 2028 (with a $1MM buyout) and $13MM in 2029.

NL Central Notes: Gray, Cubs, Brewers

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The Cardinals started the season without their biggest offseason signing, as staff ace Sonny Gray opened the 2024 campaign on the shelf due to a hamstring strain. The right-hander was scheduled for a final rehab start this past week before returning to big league action, but those plans were dashed by an unfortunate rainout that kept Gray from taking the mound. The club initially announced that Gray would have his Triple-A start pushed back to this coming Tuesday, but manager Carlos Marmol revealed to reporters (including The Athletic’s Katie Woo) today that Gray’s start that day will actually be for the big league club.

Per Marmol, Gray will be limited to around 65 pitches in his Cardinals debut, where he’ll take on the Phillies in the second game of a three-game set between the clubs. Gray landed in St. Louis back in November on a three-year, $75MM deal following a dominant 2023 season in Minnesota. The right-hander posted a 2.79 ERA with an MLB-best 2.83 FIP for the Twins last year in a performance that earned him his third career All Star appearance and a second-place finish in AL Cy Young award voting behind Yankees ace Gerrit Cole.

The Cardinals are surely hoping Gray will bring that same form to St. Louis. The club was plagued by one of the worst starting pitching staffs in the majors last year, and the early returns haven’t been much better so far with the rotation’s 5.64 FIP in the young 2024 campaign is better than only the Rockies and Blue Jays among all big league clubs. Upon his return, Gray figures to replace struggling youngster Zack Thompson in the club’s rotation mix, slotting in alongside fellow veterans Miles Mikolas, Steven Matz, Kyle Gibson, and Lance Lynn.

More from around the NL Central…

  • The Cubs made a surprise roster move just before the start of their game against the Dodgers this afternoon, placing right-hander Julian Merryweather on the 15-day injured list with a right shoulder strain as noted by Meghan Montemurro of the Chicago Tribune. It’s a significant blow to the club’s relief corps, as Merryweather has dominated with a 3.29 ERA (136 ERA+) and a nearly matching 3.46 FIP in 73 appearances for the Cubs across the past two seasons. Merryweather’s absence will pave the way for right-hander Daniel Palencia, who pitched to a 4.45 ERA across 27 appearances in his rookie season last year, to join the club’s bullpen. Meanwhile, Merryweather’s role in the club’s late-inning mix alongside Adbert Alzolay and Hector Neris figures to be filled by Mark Leiter Jr.
  • Speaking of pitching roster moves, the Brewers placed right-hander Jakob Junis on the 15-day IL yesterday due to a right shoulder impingement. Fortunately for Milwaukee, it sounds as though the issue isn’t particularly serious. According to Todd Rosiak of the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel, an MRI on Junis’s shoulder came back clean and Junis told reporters that he hopes to begin ramping back up in a few days. That would seem to indicate an absence near the minimum for the right-hander, who’s been replaced by southpaw Aaron Ashby on the active roster while he recuperates. Ashby, 26 next month, did not pitch in the majors last year after undergoing shoulder surgery but now appears to be healthy, having already made a five-inning start at the Triple-A level this season.

NL Central Notes: India, Ashby, Santana, Pirates

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Plantar fasciitis sidelined Jonathan India last summer, and the injury is still impacting the Reds infielder’s availability as Spring Training begins.  Manager David Bell told the Cincinnati Enquirer’s Charlie Goldsmith and other reporters that India isn’t slated to appear in a game until March 7 or 8, as India’s plantar fasciitis tore during the offseason and is still causing him some discomfort.  On the plus side, the tear means that India won’t need to undergo surgery on his foot, and Bell said that India is still able to take part in baseball activity as he builds up to being game-ready.

Health is just one of many uncertainties hanging over India as he begins his fourth Major League season.  Already the subject of frequent trade rumors due to Cincinnati’s plethora of up-and-coming infield talent, India looks to be moving into a utility role if he remains with the Reds, as he could be playing all over the infield, at DH, and perhaps in left field.

Other items from around the NL Central…

  • Aaron Ashby is eager to be back after missing virtually all of the 2023 season due to arthroscopic surgery on his throwing shoulder.  Describing the procedure to Todd Rosiak of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, Ashby said “I essentially had some calcified muscle on my rotator cuff, and they went in there and clipped it right off.  Once I got out of surgery the doctor was like, ’This was best-case scenario for you.’  It’s a minimal surgery in terms of what they did, but a shoulder surgery is a shoulder surgery, and it’s tricky at times.”  The southpaw’s only game action in 2023 was seven innings of minor-league rehab work in September, but he has been making good progress in Spring Training and is hoping to win a spot in the Brewers rotation, though Rosiak notes that bullpen work could help ease Ashby back into regular activity.
  • Carlos Santana had interest in returning to the Pirates as a free agent this winter, with Santana telling Jason Mackey of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette that he expressed this to the team when he was traded to the Brewers prior to last summer’s trade deadline.  The Bucs still had some interest during the offseason even after signing Rowdy Tellez to ostensibly fill the void at first base, but Santana didn’t know why an agreement wasn’t reached.  “My agent has a very good relationship with the team, but he didn’t tell me anything.  I wanted to come back, but there was nothing going on,” the first baseman said.  Santana instead joined the Twins on a one-year, $5.25MM deal, and the Pirates will head into 2024 with Tellez and Connor Joe as the first base platoon and Andrew McCutchen returning as the primary DH.
  • This could be something of a tough read for Pirates fans, but The Athletic’s Stephen J. Nesbitt and Ken Rosenthal details some of the missteps that have slowed the team’s rebuild, such as a lack of success in international signings and some instances of a disconnect between traditional baseball teachings and the more modern approach of GM Ben Cherington.  However, the largest issue is naturally the team’s lack of spending under owner Bob Nutting, as there is less margin for error for Cherington’s front office when operating within a tight budget.  Nesbitt and Rosenthal’s piece was published a day before the Pirates announced a five-year, $77MM extension with Mitch Keller, which is one instance of how the Bucs have been slightly more willing to spend in order to lock up young cornerstone players.
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