The Brewers announced that left-hander Nestor Cortes has been placed on the 15-day injured list due to a flexor strain in his throwing elbow. Southpaw Grant Wolfram was called up from Triple-A to take Cortes’ spot on the active roster.
This is now the second time in eight months that a flexor strain has sent Cortes to the IL, as a similar injury sidelined him last September when Cortes was still pitching with the Yankees. He was able to make it back for two appearances in the World Series, including his infamous relief outing in Game 1 that saw Cortes allow Freddie Freeman’s walkoff grand slam.
Brewers assistant GM Matt Kleine told reporters (including Curt Hogg of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel) that Cortes was feeling some elbow discomfort leading up to his last start, though Cortes still delivered six innings of shutout ball against the Reds on April 3. Kleine doesn’t think the flexor strain is a “long-term issue,” and Cortes himself told Hogg and company that his concern level is “pretty low.” A previous round of scans cleared Cortes to pitch three days ago, but Cortes said he’ll seek out a second opinion just out of due diligence.
Cortes is now the seventh starting pitcher on Milwaukee’s absurdly crowded injured list, as the Brewers have already just about reached critical mass for pitching health just over a week into the season. Tobias Myers and Aaron Ashby both sustained oblique strains during Spring Training, Aaron Civale made one regular-season start before a hamstring strain sent him to the IL, and Brandon Woodruff started the season on the 15-day IL as he continues his lengthy recovery from a shoulder surgery. In other longer-term absences, DL Hall is on the 60-day IL after suffering a lat strain this spring, and Robert Gasser is recovering from a Tommy John surgery last June.
Freddy Peralta now stands as the only healthy member of the Brewers’ projected rotation. Tyler Alexander, Elvin Rodriguez, and Chad Patrick (all swingmen or multi-inning relief options in an ideal world) comprise the makeshift rotation behind Peralta, and Rule 5 Draft pick Connor Thomas might now be called upon to make a start or two in Cortes’ absence, with Wolfram taking Thomas’ spot as a left-handed bullpen arm. The Brewers signed veteran Jose Quintana to provide more rotation depth at the start of March, but he is still building up his arm at Triple-A due to his late start to Spring Training.
Cortes was acquired as part of the biggest trade of the Brewers’ offseason, as Cortes, Caleb Durbin, and $2MM in cash considerations came from the Yankees for Devin Williams back in December. Both Cortes and Williams are pending free agents, but Milwaukee was able to save a little cash in dealing its star closer while also getting a new long-term infield piece and (in theory) a veteran arm to stabilize the rotation.
This injury to Cortes now possibly throws that plan out of whack, and the southpaw and the Brewers can only hope that the strain is as relatively minor as it seems. Between his last regular-season game in 2024 and Game 1 of the World Series, Cortes missed about five weeks, which would represent a pretty big chunk of the 2025 campaign if he needs a similar recovery period this time around.
Wolfram’s promotion is also worth noting, as the 28-year-old lefty is now on the verge of making his Major League debut. An 18th-round pick for the Rangers in the 2018 draft, Wolfram spent his entire career in the Texas farm system before inking a guaranteed deal with Milwaukee last December, putting him onto a 40-man roster for the first time. Wolfram had a 3.34 ERA, 25.6% strikeout rate, and 10.9% walk rate over 56 2/3 innings with Triple-A Round Rock in 2024, and his first two Triple-A outings for the Brewers have resulted in a 6.00 ERA over three innings.
Damaged goods. Was telegraphed.
Time for Q to rescue the galaxy, and I mean Lelo, not John de Lancie.
I don’t care how many pitchers get hurt, I never ever ever want to see Elvin Rodriguez on Brewers pitching mound again, there’s guys in AA that are better options
Brewers are missing Colin Rea and Frankie Montas big time.
A man named Wolfram, how can he fail?
Hungry like the WolfRam.
Pitching injury epidemic, 2 teams playing in minor league parks with uncertainty in their future, massive disparity between LA,NY and everyone else, blatant abuse of deferrals and clauses l, juiced baseballs and modified bats to increase offense, robo umps. This sport is becoming a joke.
Can’t say the balls are juiced when you’re playing in unseasonably warm weather in late March/early April.
Grandpa, tell us when baseball was the bestest ever!
Before Gramps had a cell phone and access to the Internet. He is Tony Kubek’s and Joe Garagiola’s biggest fan.
They were the best. Never forget a game in old Met Stadium in Minnesota when it was rainy and a guy in a business suit went for as Joe described it as a $5 baseball fell in the mud. There was a small patch of grass between the end of the 3rd base stands and outfield section at the old stadium. But who today wears a business suit to a game. And chased the ball for his kid only to get a cleaning bill but he made it on national TV.
Great story! And now that I think of it, I have never seen a guy in a suit at a baseball game ever lol.
@Redmatt You’re right, perhaps I’m stuck in my old ways being born in the 90s the world just passes you by. I think it’s cute your generation needs another video under the main video just to maintain your attention longer than 30 seconds. Since baseball is so concerned with youth appeal, how about we just stream someone playing Subway Surfers between innings on TV. The 7th inning stretch is just Mr.Beast giving a million dollars if a fan can hit 100MPH blindfolded. As if consistency and integrity should be a “boomer” only quality. What a joke.
“Pitching injury epidemic…Blatant abuse of deferrals”…How can you “blatantly abuse” something that is clearly within the rules of baseball and standard business practices?
No player is held at gunpoint to accept a contract with deferrals and, according to Google, baseball teams were already deferring contracts in 1974 if not earlier.
The deferral is an accounting practice that has been a normal part of standard business practices for many, many generations of businesses.
The only reason people complain about the Dodgers payroll management strategy, is that their own favorite team is clueless on how to better manage payroll and revenues for maximum efficiency.
That’s partly it. The other factor is the $400 million payroll.
“$400M payroll”..I last heard the Dodgers payroll was $320M, although I don’t confirm that. When you have daily overflow, packed, standing room only crowds, soaring TV ratings and revenues several times your payroll, you reinvest LOTS of money back into your core product, baseball.
Teams received around $200 million in revenue sharing plus national revenue to start the year. Currently, 9 teams have spent their entire shared revenue on payroll. Spend your free money on payroll before you cry about other team’s spending.
$400M payroll aka the Brewers total payroll over the last six years. LOL
What did they do with their portion of revenue sharing?? I’ll bet that the poor billionaires that own the Brewers found a way for some of that revenue sharing to end up in their hand me down suit pockets.
Giannis Antetokounmpo has been eating better lately!!! Get ’em!!! LOL
They are building offices for the front office expansion. Told they are up to over 600 people on the payroll in the organization
Braun’s contract and Yelich’s had some chunks deferred. Cain’s probably had deferred. Brewers are the smallest market yet range much higher in payroll consistently. They invested a lot of many on the International side where they found Chourio among others as a result. You see why Antanasio is in the running for next commissioner.
Why did the Brewers trade for this character? 5’10” pitcher? He’s cooked.
I would have been less concerned with his stature and more concerned that before he was giving up game winning grand slams in the WS, he missed 40 days at the end of the season because his elbow was torn up.
And the Yankees received a player who missed the first half of the season with a back injury – literally he didn’t pitch until after the All Star game- and gave up a critical HR to Pete Alonso.
The Yankees didn’t need Cortes (seemingly) and they knew his elbow was trash. Whatever you get back for the guy you don’t need that is also injured is gravy on the potatoes.
To get Durbin. Murphy couldn’t be more overjoyed after getting him.
I think the brewers will be lucky to finish .500 this season. I mean they sure as heck won’t win over 90 again especially with this pitching staff
Bold prediction
But I thought 90 was easy because the division is weak. The patchwork pitching has pulled off a few shutout(s) most of the younger bats are showing improvements. Frelick is going to be a problem for teams if his exit velo on batted balls stays around the season.
Can’t disagree. They have a decent lineup, but this rotation for the first 2 months will put them so deep in the hole that recovery will be a miracle.
Yeah, sadly this feels likely.
Cheaters trading damaged goods, but then the Brewers are just stupid to make that trade.
They could have gotten more for Devin Williams IMHO.
Grant Wolfram. Sounds like a name for a general during the Civil War.
I can imagine him with mutton chops, verily.
They had the choice of tungsten or Wolfram.
Hope No. 74 is available.
They chose Cubic Zirconium
“They had the choice of tungsten or Wolfram”
I see what you did there, coronel! I’m not very knowledgeable about metals, so I had to look it up.
At what point do we start talking about the Brewers training staff? How many injuries have their pitchers had the last few year?
When injuries pile up the training staff should never be overlooked. I’m just not seeing that here, he has this injury less than a year ago and only started a handful of games between the 2.
I once read alot of training staffs are hesitant to do preemptive MRIs because many pitchers arms have so much damage they can’t always distinguish old and new injuries. It’s just that violent of a motion that by the time they ve hit MLB their ligaments, tendons, joints, and muscles of show a ton damage and scar tissue compared to normal human arm.
Hmmm, classic comments who might follow their respective teams but don’t really know much about others, in this case the Brewers.
Therefore, allow me. Jose Quintana will be available by the end of this week. Chad Patrick won the Triple Crown of pitching in AAA last year and today, just finished his second excellent game. Brandon Woodruff is expected back by the first week of May. Tobias Myers, last year’s excellent rookie will be ready in another 10 -14 days.
I could go on, like Aaron Civale expected back in 3 weeks and Aaron Ashby later in May but the point is, the Brewers will have a rotation of: Peralta, Myers,Quintana, Woodruff, Patrick, Cortes and Civale no later than mid May,
Yeah, this is the year the Brewers finish below .500, with “that” rotation.
Thanks fans, we just keep laughing in Milwaukee since we’ve had the best won/lost percentage in the NL Central since 2017.. Go ahead, look it up.