With three starting positions on the Milwaukee Brewers' injured list, the team has been in dire need of some good news. That news came on Friday, when manager Pat Murphy announced the imminent return of one of their Opening Day starters.
Brandon Woodruff has been on the IL since May 1 with right shoulder inflammation during his April 30 start against the Arizona Diamondbacks. Woodruff experienced a sharp drop in velocity on his pitches, with his fastball topping out at just 85 mph. Before that start, Woodruff's fastball was routinely sitting in the low-90s. An MRI revealed no structural damage to his shoulder, but the Brewers opted to give the pitcher some time off, given his history of shoulder injuries.
Woodruff is one of three starting pitchers on the Brewers' injured list. Prospect Brandon Sproat, who came over in the Freddy Peralta trade with the New York Mets, is day-to-day with hamstring cramping after exiting Wednesday's game, but has yet to be officially placed on the IL.
Logan Henderson was briefly with the team, but was placed on the IL on April 26 with lower back tightness. Henderson is not expected to be back until July at the earliest. Finally, earlier this week, starter Quinn Priester was announced out for the season and will undergo thoracic outlet decompression surgery.
Despite all of these injuries, the Brewers remain atop the NL Central Division by 5.5 games over the St. Louis Cardinals. Murphy is unclear of how the rotation will shake out when Woodruff returns, but expects that ace Jacob Misiorowski will be pushed back to the series against the Chicago Cubs. Woodruff is expected to return Monday for the series against the Cincinnati Reds.
Woodruff was off to yet another solid start this year in his ninth season with the Brewers. Through six starts, Woodruff has a 2-1 record, with a 3.60 ERA and 1.033 WHIP across 30.0 innings of work. His return will be a welcome one for the rotation, as the team has been deploying spot starters and bullpen games outside of Misiorowski and Kyle Harrison. Once Woodruff, Sproat, and Henderson return to full health, the Brewers will have one of the strongest top-to-bottom rotations in MLB.
