Brewers’ Jason Alexander Out Until May Due To Shoulder Injury
Brewers righty Jason Alexander is expected to miss more than a month to begin the season, reports Adam McCalvy of MLB.com (Twitter link). The 29-year-old righty experienced discomfort in his shoulder when he was ramping up for spring training last month, and he’s likely to be sidelined into the second half of May. Alexander becomes the second Brewers pitcher who’ll miss substantial time due to shoulder trouble; left-hander Aaron Ashby will miss at least two months due to shoulder trouble of his own.
Alexander made his big league debut in Milwaukee last season, tossing 71 2/3 innings for the Brewers over the course of 11 starts and another seven relief appearances. He posted a strong 3.21 ERA over his first five starts before beginning to falter, ultimately finishing out his rookie campaign with a 5.40 ERA and a lowly 14.7% strikeout rate. Alexander’s 8.7% walk rate was generally solid, however, and he induced grounders at a strong 50.6% clip. The lack of punchouts and a susceptibility to home runs (1.51 HR/9) worked against him, but the righty had posted a 2.84 ERA in 63 1/3 Triple-A frames before being called to the big leagues.
Neither Alexander nor Ashby was guaranteed a rotation spot heading into 2023, but their absences will thin out Milwaukee’s depth a fair bit. It’s not clear whether the Brewers knew the full extent of either player’s shoulder issues when signing Wade Miley to a one-year deal last month, but what was once at least a somewhat surprising deal for a pitching-rich club could now prove pivotal. Regardless of whether Miley’s addition was made with the knowledge that Ashby and Alexander were ailing or whether it’s mere serendipity, the Brewers are surely glad to have the veteran southpaw on the staff.
The Brewers’ rotation heading into 2023 will feature Corbin Burnes, Brandon Woodruff, Freddy Peralta, Eric Lauer and the aforementioned Miley. Righty Adrian Houser, a rotation staple the past couple seasons, is still on hand as a sixth option, but both Ashby and Alexander would’ve also been starting candidates in the event of injuries elsewhere on the staff. Trade acquisition Janson Junk, prospect Ethan Small and DFA reclamation Bryse Wilson give Milwaukee further depth, though Wilson is out of minor league options and isn’t necessarily a lock to make the Opening Day roster.
Brewers Select Jason Alexander
JUNE 1: Milwaukee has officially selected Alexander’s contract, optioning Luke Barker to Triple-A Nashville in a corresponding move. To create 40-man roster space, they’ve transferred reliever Jake Cousins from the 10-day to the 60-day injured list.
Cousins went on the IL on May 1 with an elbow effusion, and he’ll now be out of action through at least the end of July. It seems unlikely he’ll be back when first eligible anyhow, as he recently told Curt Hogg of the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel (Twitter link) he received a platelet-rich plasma injection and would be shut down from throwing entirely for at least a month.
MAY 31: The Brewers are planning to start right-hander Jason Alexander tomorrow night against the Cubs, tweets Curt Hogg of the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel. He is not yet on the club’s 40-man roster, so the Brew Crew will have to make a corresponding move.
Alexander, 29, is set to make his MLB debut. The younger brother of former Dodgers reliever Scott Alexander, Jason Alexander went undrafted in 2017. He signed with the Angels as a free agent, working his way as high as Triple-A but never getting onto the 40-man roster. Los Angeles released him in 2020, and he hooked on with the Marlins the following April.
The California native made just six appearances in the upper levels of the Miami farm system as he missed some time due to injury. He signed a minor league deal with Milwaukee in December and has spent the first couple months with their top affiliate in Nashville. Over nine outings (seven starts), Alexander has worked to an excellent 2.64 ERA through 47 2/3 innings. His 17.5% strikeout rate is below-average, but he’s posted a hefty 63.3% ground-ball rate and only walked 6.3% of opposing hitters.
Milwaukee has been hit by a couple key rotation injuries of late, forcing them to dip into their starting pitching depth. Both Freddy Peralta and Brandon Woodruff have landed on the injured list, forcing Aaron Ashby into regular action alongside Corbin Burnes, Eric Lauer and Adrian Houser. The fifth spot is uncertain, with well-regarded prospect Ethan Small making a spot start yesterday during a doubleheader. Alexander will now get a chance to audition for a role himself.
Brewers Sign Three To Minor League Deals
The Brewers have signed outfielder Jonathan Davis and right-handers Trevor Kelley and Jason Alexander to minor league contracts with invitations to Major League Spring Training, tweets Tom Haudricourt of the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel.
Davis, 29, has spent parts of four years in the big leagues — all with the Blue Jays except for a brief 12-game stint with the Yankees late in the 2021 season. He’s never received regular playing time in the big leagues, as evidenced by the fact that last year’s 64 games played and 103 plate appearances were both career-high marks. Davis, often used as a late-inning pinch runner and defensive replacement by the Jays over the years, is 11-for-13 in stolen bases attempts at the MLB level but just a .171/.272/.248 hitter in 259 plate appearances. He’s been better in Triple-A, where he’s a .249/.356/.416 hitter in 640 trips to the plate.
The 28-year-old Kelley also comes to the Brewers organization with some big league experience, albeit a good bit less. He tallied 11 2/3 innings between the Red Sox and Phillies in 2019-20 but was tattooed for a dozen runs on 17 hits (four homers) and six walks with 11 punchouts. It’s not a great big league track record, but Kelley also posted a microscopic 1.52 ERA in 41 1/3 frames with the Braves’ Triple-A affiliate last season and carries a lifetime 1.66 ERA in 130 innings at that level. Kelley has fanned 24.8% of his opponents in Triple-A and posted a 9.1% walk rate.
Alexander joins the Brewers after parts of four pro seasons split between the Angels and Marlins organizations. An undrafted free agent out of Cal State Long Beach, the now-28-year-old righty has a pedestrian 4.87 ERA in 281 minor league innings but much more encouraging rate stats. While Alexander’s 20.6% strikeout rate is below average, he’s walked only 6.1% of his career opponents and tallied a huge 56.2% ground-ball rate since turning pro. Alexander didn’t pitch much with the Marlins organization last year, but in 19 2/3 frames across three levels (including 14 2/3 innings in Triple-A), he logged a 1.37 ERA with a 22-to-3 K/BB ratio and an enormous 67.3% grounder rate.