Brewers' Front Office To Blame For Pitching Crisis, New Report Claims

Milwaukee is just trying to stay afloat right now
Apr 5, 2025; Milwaukee, Wisconsin, USA;  Milwaukee Brewers right fielder Sal Frelick (10) during the game against the Cincinnati Reds at American Family Field. Mandatory Credit: Jeff Hanisch-Imagn Images
Apr 5, 2025; Milwaukee, Wisconsin, USA; Milwaukee Brewers right fielder Sal Frelick (10) during the game against the Cincinnati Reds at American Family Field. Mandatory Credit: Jeff Hanisch-Imagn Images / Jeff Hanisch-Imagn Images
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The Milwaukee Brewers entered Sunday with a 4-5 record, which is miraculous given the state of their pitching staff.

The Brewers are currently without no less than six starting pitchers: Brandon Woodruff, Jose Quintana, Tobias Myers, DL Hall, Aaron Ashby, and Aaron Civale.

This has led reigning National League Manager of the Year Pat Murphy to turn to guys like Connor Thomas, Chad Patrick, Tyler Alexander, and Elvin Rodriguez, and the results have been a mixed bag.

On Sunday, FanSided’s Tyler Koerth wrote about Milwaukee’s pitching crisis and blamed the team’s offseason decisions for the current situation.

“While there have been some good performances by (Milwaukee’s) makeshift starting rotation, such as Patrick tossing 4.2 scoreless innings during his home debut against the Royals and Alexander contributing 5.2 no-hit innings against the Reds, the team has also gotten burned by Rodriguez and Thomas struggling,” Koerth wrote.

“Both Rodriguez and Thomas have appeared in two games so far, with 23 of the teams league leading 57 earned runs coming against the two. Most recently, this duo gave up 11 earned runs to the Reds, who entered the contest in a massive slump at the plate.”

“For Milwaukee, an organization that prides itself on turning pitchers careers around, they have also seen newcomer Nestor Cortes get blown up by his former team and off-season signee Grant Anderson surrender three earned runs in his lone appearance of the season.”

“With all of these terrible outings, some questions have been raised towards the team's off-season approach towards pitching.”

“This winter, Milwaukee let Frankie Montas, Wade Miley, Joe Ross, and Colin Rea go while trading away closer Devin Williams. They countered these losses by acquiring Cortes in the Williams trade, signing unfamiliar names like Rodriguez, Anderson, and Grant Wolfram, plus selecting Thomas in the Rule-5 Draft.”

“These transactions did end up saving the organization millions.”

“Unfortunately, it’s becoming clear that the Brewers' penny-pinching moves are costing them wins. It's rare for an organization like Milwaukee to find themselves leading the league in earned runs, even if it's only nine games into the season. While the pitching staff has the potential to turn things around, and internal help is available with Jacob Misiorowski and Craig Yoho waiting for calls to the big leagues, every game counts, and so far, the Brewers are paying the price in the form of losses.”

Milwaukee must stay afloat somewhere in the realm of .500 until some of their starters return to the rotation.

Easier said than done.

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Colin Keane
COLIN KEANE

Colin Keane is a contributing journalist for "Milwaukee Brewers On SI." Born in Illinois, Colin grew up in Massachusetts as the third of four brothers. For his high school education, Colin attended St. Mark's School (Southborough, MA), where he played basketball and soccer and served as student body president. He went on to receive a Bachelor of Arts in English Literature from Villanova University. Colin currently resides in Williamsburg, Brooklyn.