25 Years of Miller Park/Am Fam Field: The All-Time Brewers Starting Pitching Staff

[Michael Trzinski]

This year is the 25th anniversary of play at Miller Park/Am Fam Field and the Brewers are going to celebrate that milestone this summer, including a special day at the ballpark on Friday, July 25.

Several players from each of the last 25 seasons will be at the ballyard in late July, signing autographs, working at concession stands, and working the cash registers at retail stores inside the stadium.

To help celebrate, Brewer Fanatic is presenting its All-Time Miller Park/Am Fam Field pitching staff and position player roster. Without further ado, here is Part One of a three-part series, starting with the All-Time Brewers five-man rotation, based on Brewer stats only from 2001-2025.

STARTING ROTATION

Ben Sheets (2001-08)
GS – 221, W – 86, ERA – 3.72, WAR – 25.6, ERA+ - 115, FIP – 3.56

A member of the gold medal winning 2000 USA Olympic team, Sheets made his debut the same year Miller Park opened. The right-hander pitched one of the finest games in Brewers history on May 16, 2004, when he beat the Atlanta Braves 4-1 while allowing only three hits, one walk, and one run while striking out 18 batters, still a Milwaukee record. Sheets had nine games with 10+ punchouts during the year and his 264 strikeouts set a single season Milwaukee record.

Sheets ranks in the top five in Brewer history in WAR, innings pitched, strikeouts, and games started.

CC Sabathia (2008)
GS – 17, W – 11, ERA – 1.65, WAR – 4.9, ERA+ - 255, FIP – 2.44

The big lefthander played in Milwaukee for part of only one year, but ah, what a magical season! He was acquired in an early July trade with Cleveland for Rob Bryson, Zach Jackson, Matt LaPorta, and Michael Brantley, but he was worth every penny for the three months he spent in Brew City.

Of his 17 starts with the Brewers, Sabathia completed seven of them, including three shutouts. On August 31, he was *this* close to a no-hitter when official scorer Bob Webb ruled that a nubber in front of the plate--bobbled by Sabathia--was a base hit in Pittsburgh. Sabathia went on to earn his ninth straight win as a Brewer with a one-hit shutout, along with 11 strikeouts.

Sabathia struggled slightly in three of his six September starts, but beat the Chicago Cubs on the final day of the season. The postseason was a different story. Sabathia had pitched a career-high 253 innings during the season and it showed when he got battered by the Philadelphia Phillies 5-2 in Game Two of the NLDS, which the Brewers ended up losing in four games.

Brandon Woodruff (2017-23)
GS – 115, W – 46, ERA – 3.10, WAR – 16.7, ERA+ - 137, FIP – 3.19

Woodruff has been on the shelf since September 2023 after undergoing major surgery to his right shoulder, but despite that fact he still makes the rotation as an All-Time Brewer. He is a two-time All-Star (2019, 2021) and also finished fifth in NL Cy Young voting in 2021. Woodruff also had a moment at the plate when he took Clayton Kershaw deep in Game One of the 2018 NLCS, which they eventually lost to the Dodgers in seven games.

The burly redheaded right hander known as ‘Woody’ currently ranks first all-time for Milwaukee in ERA, WHIP (1.045), and ERA+.

Corbin Burnes (2018-23)
GS – 145, W – 62, ERA – 3.18, WAR – 13.6, ERA+ - 129, FIP – 3.11

Burnes began his Brewer career as a reliever and had one solid year and one that was pretty awful. He became a full-time starter during the Covid year of 2020 and became a Cy Young candidate each of his final four seasons with Milwaukee, including winning the award in 2021. The right-hander was also an All-Star from 2021-2023.

Burnes ranks first for single-season marks with K/9 (12.6), ERA+ (170), and FIP (1.63). His career mark of a 3.11 FIP is first on the leaderboard, while he ranks in the top five in ERA, K/9, and ERA+.

Yovani Gallardo (2007-14)
GS – 211, W – 89, ERA – 3.69, WAR – 15.5, ERA+ - 109, FIP – 3.71

Gallardo posted impressive numbers during his eight seasons in Milwaukee but had little to show for it in terms of awards, as he was named to only one All-Star team (2010). He won a Silver Slugger award that same year, batting .254/.329/.508 with four homers, four doubles, and an OPS+ of 122.

On the mound, the right hander had four seasons of 200+ strikeouts, a Brewer record. He also sits atop the career leaderboards with 1,226 strikeouts, and ranks fifth with 89 wins. 

 

 

HONORABLE MENTION-STARTING ROTATION

Freddy Peralta (2018-25), Zack Greinke (2011-12), Doug Davis (2003-06, 2010), Mike Fiers (2011-15), Zach Davies (2015-19), Chase Anderson (2016-19).

 

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[Outlander]

Since longevity doesn't really matter with this list I would think Jimmy Nelson at least deserves a mention. Put a healthy Jimmy Nelson on that 2018 teams and maybe looking at a World Series. Can't imagine anybody in their right mind taking Chase Anderson, Doug Davis, Mike Fiers or Zach Davies over 2017 Jimmy Nelson.

[BrewCrewBlueDevil]

Sabathia

Woodruff 

Burned

Sheets

Peralta

 

[Michael Trzinski]

2 hours ago, Outlander said:

Since longevity doesn't really matter with this list I would think Jimmy Nelson at least deserves a mention. Put a healthy Jimmy Nelson on that 2018 teams and maybe looking at a World Series. Can't imagine anybody in their right mind taking Chase Anderson, Doug Davis, Mike Fiers or Zach Davies over 2017 Jimmy Nelson.

Nelson just missed. I always liked him, but in looking at the overall body of work, he was just a bit outside.

BTW, nobody ever thought I was in my right mind. I'm not a lefty...lol.

[Michael Trzinski]

48 minutes ago, BrewCrewBlueDevil said:

Sabathia

Woodruff 

Burned

Sheets

Peralta

 

I had Peralta at first, but overall, Yo has (so far) had a better career. If we do this next year, Peralta probably gets the nod.

[Jason Wang]

what about julio teheran for that one month he was really good before he got really bad

[Michael Trzinski]

15 hours ago, Jason Wang said:

what about julio teheran for that one month he was really good before he got really bad

I know you 'new wave' guys aren't much for the 'olden day' stats, but in his first six starts in 2023, Teheran had a 'game score' between 57-66, which FanGraphs (how about that!) ranks as 'above average' or 'good.' Kinda went downhill after that, much like that ski-jumper that fell off the side of the ski jump ramp back when ABC had the 'Wide World of Sports.'

[Jason Wang]

6 hours ago, Michael Trzinski said:

I know you 'new wave' guys aren't much for the 'olden day' stats, but in his first six starts in 2023, Teheran had a 'game score' between 57-66, which FanGraphs (how about that!) ranks as 'above average' or 'good.' Kinda went downhill after that, much like that ski-jumper that fell off the side of the ski jump ramp back when ABC had the 'Wide World of Sports.'

yeah ski jumper falling sounds about right

[Michael Trzinski]

On 5/23/2025 at 12:02 AM, Jason Wang said:

yeah ski jumper falling sounds about right