Should Milwaukee elevate right-handed pitcher Jacob Misiorowski, the club’s best pitching prospect, from Biloxi to help strengthen its relief corps? Let us evaluate the situation.
Jacob Misiorowski possesses some of the best raw talent in the minors. He throws a blazing fastball, a wipe-out slider, and a developing curve. His control, however, is inadequate.
The Brewers have continued to work Misiorowski as a starter, letting him go 3-5 innings each time he heads to the mound. The results have been mostly good. Forty-one strikeouts and only ten hits allowed in 27 innings is awesome. Twenty walks is not.
Recently, The Athletic published an article in which Jim Bowden stated that Misiorowski could play in the majors right now, and be very effective, as a reliever. Scouts and analysts have addressed this question for a couple of years. His stuff is amazing, but can Misiorowski harness his pitches to limit the walks? The Brewers seem to think he can, hence his remaining at Biloxi and in the rotation.
This circumstance appears to be quite similar to Josh Hader’s when he first arrived in Milwaukee. The team wanted he be a starter before assigning him to reliever, a role in which he excelled.
The Brewers’ predicament is exacerbated by the club’s requirements. The team is currently in first place, but they are doing so despite multiple injuries to their pitching staff (Jakob Junis, Wade Miley, DL Hall, Devin Williams, and JB Bukauskas) and a rotation that does not go deep in games (the Brewers starters have pitched the fewest innings in the majors), putting additional strain on the bullpen.
As the season moves on, will the Brewers relievers wilt under the weight of a heavy workload?
We should mention that the relief corps has performed admirably this season (an ERA of 3.77), ranking 13th in the majors. However, that is not as impressive as our bullpen’s ERA in 2023, when it was the second best in the league. 2024 has had some good performances (Bryan Hudson, Hoby Milner, Elvis Peguero), some awful (Abner Uribe), and several in between. Furthermore, injuries to the starters have forced Bryse Wilson, a dependable bullpen arm in 2023, into the rotation.
So, the need is there. Yes, guys like Bukauskas, Junis, and Williams will likely return – at some point. But the Brewers will need a lot of arms over the course of the season. Other players at Nashville can help – but none have the potential of Misiorowski.
