Brewers Notes: Rotation, Woodruff, Garabito

Right-hander Brandon Woodruff is easily the most experienced arm in Milwaukee’s rotation mix after the Freddy Peralta trade but health has been an ongoing issue in recent years. He appears to be a bit behind schedule in camp this year after finishing 2025 on the injured list due to a lat strain. He spoke to reporters, including Adam McCalvy of MLB.com, about his ramp-up and wouldn’t commit to being ready by Opening Day.

“I think it’s too early to say right now,” Woodruff said, when asked about the chances of him being ready by the start of the season. “It’s up in the air right now. I know that term’s used a lot but, like I said, there’s one goal I have this year and that’s to be healthy… I want to be available at the end of the year when it matters most. What that looks like early on could be a little bit different. There’s nothing set in concrete. All I know is I threw 25 pitches today live. I feel good. I feel good after, sitting here talking to you guys. That’s a great sign, so I’ll just continue to build off that and progress.”

Woodruff was a mainstay of the club’s rotation for most of the 2019 to 2022 seasons but has been less reliable recently. Shoulder issues limited him to 11 starts in 2023 and ultimately required surgery, which wiped out his 2024 season. He was activated off the IL in July and made 12 starts. His velocity was a couple of ticks below his pre-surgery form but the results were still good. He allowed 3.20 earned runs per nine with a 32.3% strikeout rate and 5.4% walk rate. He hit the IL with a lat strain in September and missed the postseason.

Given the tumultuous nature of his past few years, it makes sense that he and the Brewers would be cautious and focused on the long season ahead as opposed to forcing the issue in late March. If Woodruff misses a few starts to begin the campaign, they have a lot of depth they can use in the interim.

Jacob Misiorowski and Quinn Priester probably have two spots locked up. Chad Patrick and Logan Henderson are strong candidates for two more. DL Hall, Aaron Ashby, Brandon Sproat, Robert Gasser, Ángel Zerpa, Kyle Harrison, Shane Drohan, Coleman Crow and Carlos Rodríguez are all on the roster. Some of those guys will end up in relief but they’re all optionable and could be in the majors or in the Triple-A rotation or they could be shuttled between the two throughout the year.

That huge pack of rotation options means that a non-roster arm like Gerson Garabito was going to be hard-pressed to earn a roster spot. That won’t even be his focus now, as he’ll have to prioritized his health for a while. Manager Pat Murphy recently told reporters, including Todd Rosiak of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, that Garabito had surgery to address a broken bone in his foot and will be out for four months.

It’s a tough break for the righty, who is looking to make a return to affiliated ball. He signed with the Samsung Lions of the Korea Baseball Organization in June and posted a 2.64 ERA in 15 starts for that club. He parlayed that showing into a minor league deal with the Brewers. He’ll have to recover from his surgery before he can push for a roster spot. His major league career consists of 21 appearances with the Rangers with a 5.77 ERA.

Photo courtesy of Charles LeClaire, Imagn Images