By Eric Katz
With Brandon Woodruff returning and Freddy Peralta seemingly staying, aside from free agent
Jose Quintana, the Milwaukee Brewers will be returning every starter from last season.
However, with Quintana now gone, the fifth spot in the starting rotation is undecided. Starters
like Logan Henderson, Robert Gasser, Chad Patrick, and Tobias Myers will be competing for the
job. With the amount of starting pitching depth Milwaukee has, Manager Pat Murphy has a
tasty decision this coming spring. The battle for the final spot in the Brewers’ starting rotation
will be one to pay attention to this spring.
With Brandon Woodruff returning and the team unlikely to trade Freddy Peralta, the Brewers
will be returning every starter from last season except Jose Quintana. Peralta and Woodruff are
projected to be at the top with Quinn Priester and Jacob Misierowski taking the middle spots.
However, there is no decided starter at the fifth spot in the rotation. This means that there will
be a competition this coming spring training to determine who will be the Brewers’ fifth starter.
Pitchers like Logan Henderson, Robert Gasser, Chad Patrick, and Tobias Myers all have starting
experience. It should be noted that all four pitchers made starts at some point for the Brewers
last season. Given the amount of depth the Brewers currently have, this gives Manager Pat
Murphy a tasty problem this spring.
One could argue that Chad Patrick was one of the players who single-handedly saved the
Brewers’ season last year. While the team initially planned to use him as a reliever, injuries
forced Patrick into the starting rotation, where he didn’t disappoint. In 23 starts, he went 3-8
with a 3.42 ERA, 115 strikeouts to just 35 walks, and a WHIP of 1.2290. However, despite
proving to be a solid starter, the 27-year-old was sent down to Triple-A Nashville in early July to
make room for the return of Brandon Woodruff. Upon being recalled in August, Patrick would
make just two more starts before being demoted again later that month.
Upon returning to the big club, he spent the entire month of September pitching out of the
bullpen. That month as a reliever, he had one hold with a 3.07 ERA, 21 strikeouts to just six
walks, and a WHIP of 1.1972. Arguably, the highlight of his season occurred in the decisive
Game Five of the NLDS against the Chicago Cubs. He pitched a scoreless 1.2 innings with three
strikeouts, including finishing getting the Brewers out of a jam with two runners on in the sixth
inning. He would then make way to Abner Uribe, who would finish off the Cubs, resulting in the
Brewers advancing to the NLCS.
The big question the Brewers must answer is whether they want Chad Patrick to be a starter or
a reliever. I personally believe the 27-year-old proved he was a capable starting pitcher last
season. On any other team, Patrick would’ve remained in the starting rotation all season.
However, the Brewers can also use him as a swingman in the pitching staff. He’ll have
opportunities this spring to prove that 2025 was no mirage and that he can be in the rotation
permanently. It’ll be very telling this spring what Milwaukee’s plans are with Chad Patrick.
Logan Henderson is currently ranked as the Milwaukee Brewers’ fifth-best prospect in the
organization. Last season, he was initially sent back down to Triple-A Nashville. However, due to
the ineffectiveness of Elvin Rodriguez and a plethora of injured starters, Milwaukee would
recall him. However, he was only able to make five starts due to an elbow injury that kept him
out for the entire season. Despite his season being cut short, he showed promise. In those five
starters, Henderson was 3-0 with a 1.78 ERA, 33 strikeouts to just eight walks, and a WHIP of
0.987.
Milwaukee has high hopes for the 23-year-old, who headed into last season, was ranked as the
fifth-best prospect in the Brewers’ farm system. Given the promise he showed last season in a
small sample size, Henderson will have plenty of opportunities to win the fifth starting job.
However, his innings might be limited due to last season’s elbow injury.
Tobias Myers has almost become a forgotten man. It was just two years ago that Myers had a
standout rookie season. In 2024, Myers made 25 starts and went 7-6 with a 3.11 ERA, 120
strikeouts to just 36 walks, and a WHIP of 1.2030. For his efforts, he even won the Brewers
team MVP award. However, Tobias Myers had a season to forget in 2025. First, he began the
year on the injured list and upon returning to the rotation, Myers struggled badly with
command and control. In six starts, the former Brewers team MVP went 1-1 with a 4.43 ERA, 12
strikeouts to 12 walks, and a WHIP of 2.0765. It should also be noted that he only gave the
Brewers a total of 18.3 innings. Upon returning to the team in July after his second demotion,
the 27-year-old pitched out of the bullpen. Given his struggles last season and the number of
younger arms he’ll be competing against for a starting job, Tobias Myers faces an uphill battle
to be in the rotation again.
Robert Gasser originally came over in the 2023 trade deadline deal that sent star closer Josh
Hader to the Padres. He would go on to make his debut the following season and show a lot of
promise. In five starts in 2024, he went 2-0 with a 2.57 ERA, 16 strikeouts to just one walk, and
a WHIP of 1.036. However, in June of that season, it would later be announced that Gasser had
undergone UCL surgery, which would end his season. The 26-year-old spent most of last season
recovering on the injured list and wouldn’t make his debut until late September.
Despite limited availability during the regular season, Gasser did appear in two postseason
games for the Brewers. Given how he’s just recovered from elbow surgery, Gasser will most
likely be on an innings count next season, meaning he won’t be Milwaukee’s full-time fifth
starter. It’s reasonable to expect he’ll make some spot starts and perhaps pitch out of the
bullpen as well.
In this league, there is no such thing as having too much pitching. With pitchers like Logan
Henderson, Robert Gasser, Chad Patrick, and Tobias Myers all on the roster, the Brewers have
some strong starting pitching depth. Barring the addition of another starter, the fifth spot in the
rotation is going to be decided this spring between Henderson, Gasser, Patrick, and Myers. All
four players have had success as starters before leaving Manager Pat Murphy with a tasty
decision in spring training.
