Brandon Woodruff's Status As Brewers' Opening Day Starter Unknown

[Klantz27]

12 hours ago, Turning2 said:

You don’t get to October without a top of the rotation arm pitching like an ace for most of the season. Ease him along for too long, and there might not be playoffs for him to pitch in. I don’t like it, but have to trust the organization on this one. Really wonder who would be the ace had Woody rejected the QO. They were set on trading Peralta regardless. 

Theres nothing to trust the organization didnt even want him they thought they where gonna get a comp pick lol 

 

[MVP2110]

1 hour ago, Klantz27 said:

Theres nothing to trust the organization didnt even want him they thought they where gonna get a comp pick lol 

 

Is there any part of the Brewers organization your confident in? 

[sveumrules]

2 hours ago, Klantz27 said:

Wow real impressive whats he done in the last 3 years? 

In 2023 Woodruff threw 67 IP of 53 ERA- | 82 FIP- which shook out to 2.8 rWAR | 1.4 fWAR. He made $10.8M in his final year of Arby's. The Brewers won the division by nine games.

In 2024 Woodruff got paid $2.5M to rehab. The Brewers won the division by ten games.

In 2025 Woodruff threw 64 IP of 77 ERA- | 77 FIP- which shook out to 1.5 rWAR | 1.8 fWAR. He made $15M between the salary and buyout. The Brewers won the division by five games.

All told there an even 200 starting pitchers with at least 130 IP from 2023 to 2025. Among those pitchers some of Brandon's ranks are...

131.2 IP (198th) | 64 ERA- (7th) | 79 FIP- (20th) | 139 K+ (8th) | 67 BB+ (25th) | 103 HR+ (98th) | 73 AVG+ (1st) | 66 WHIP+ (1st) | 4.3 rWAR (90th) | 3.2 fWAR (112th)

The guy one spot below him on that rWAR leaderboard in Edward Cabrera at 4.2 rWAR who the Cubs just surrendered a pretty decent prospect outlay to acquire. The guy one spot ahead of him on that leaderboard is Shane Bieber (tied with 4.3 rWAR) who signed for 2/$25M with the Blue Jays during the same offseason that Woodruff signed his 2/$17.5M.

With a scantily healthy Woodruff the Brewers have cruised to three division titles and the 2nd most wins in MLB the last three years.

If they can get 120 to 130 regular season IP from him with similarly elite rates as he has posted the last three years, plus manage his health so he can throw in the postseason...2026 will be another fun summer with a chance to see what happens in the fall. 

[Klantz27]

1 hour ago, MVP2110 said:

Is there any part of the Brewers organization your confident in? 

I like the entire pitching staff they will do well  besides woodruff he will be on the sidelines watching like usual 

[Klantz27]

1 hour ago, sveumrules said:

In 2023 Woodruff threw 67 IP of 53 ERA- | 82 FIP- which shook out to 2.8 rWAR | 1.4 fWAR. He made $10.8M in his final year of Arby's. The Brewers won the division by nine games.

In 2024 Woodruff got paid $2.5M to rehab. The Brewers won the division by ten games.

In 2025 Woodruff threw 64 IP of 77 ERA- | 77 FIP- which shook out to 1.5 rWAR | 1.8 fWAR. He made $15M between the salary and buyout. The Brewers won the division by five games.

All told there an even 200 starting pitchers with at least 130 IP from 2023 to 2025. Among those pitchers some of Brandon's ranks are...

131.2 IP (198th) | 64 ERA- (7th) | 79 FIP- (20th) | 139 K+ (8th) | 67 BB+ (25th) | 103 HR+ (98th) | 73 AVG+ (1st) | 66 WHIP+ (1st) | 4.3 rWAR (90th) | 3.2 fWAR (112th)

The guy one spot below him on that rWAR leaderboard in Edward Cabrera at 4.2 rWAR who the Cubs just surrendered a pretty decent prospect outlay to acquire. The guy one spot ahead of him on that leaderboard is Shane Bieber (tied with 4.3 rWAR) who signed for 2/$25M with the Blue Jays during the same offseason that Woodruff signed his 2/$17.5M.

With a scantily healthy Woodruff the Brewers have cruised to three division titles and the 2nd most wins in MLB the last three years.

If they can get 120 to 130 regular season IP from him with similarly elite rates as he has posted the last three years, plus manage his health so he can throw in the postseason...2026 will be another fun summer with a chance to see what happens in the fall. 

Cruised to 3 division titles with woodruff not even being able to throw 70 innings in a single season or pitch the playoffs its almost as if pitching isn't the problem and hasn't been for a lot of years maybe they should try adding 22 million to the batting order instead of on a pitcher that cant even pitch

like are you kidding all you're hoping for is 120ip for 22 million that might be a fine investment if you're the Mets with a 400 million dollar payroll but it sure as hell isn't when all your floating is 120 million and thats you're 2nd highest paid player 

We spent about 26 million combined on rengifo and Woodruff

Geno suarez hit 50 tanks last year and still has a way better glove at 34 than rengifo does he signed for 15 mil for 1 year we could of probably gotten him for 17.5 

That leaves you with 8 million to replace Woodruff zach littell is still available sure he's not on the same level as woodruff but he still put up 3.5 war last year and ate 190 innings 

Thats a clear bat upgrade and glove over rengifo and **** i would rather gamble on littell for one year over woodruff with his injury history 

So yes I dont like the woodruff signing because its not an efficient way to spend money with our payroll restrictions 

[CheezWizHed]

On 2/24/2026 at 8:43 AM, homer said:

The headline of the article says "Woodruff feeling healthy". It goes on to say:

He hasn't experienced a setback of any kind. All they are saying is he may not start the game on March 26th. 

 

20 hours ago, wiguy94 said:

Woodruff is on track to begin the season in the rotation

 

Yeah, my heart sank when I read the OP thinking that he hurt himself this spring.  While Woody's health is a high risk for the team this year, this seems more like ST fluff news. 

If they are simply bringing him along slowly in ST, I have no concerns.  They should.  I'd expect an "injury" for him mid-season too, so he is fresh for the playoffs. 

[Team Canada]

53 minutes ago, Klantz27 said:

Cruised to 3 division titles with woodruff not even being able to throw 70 innings in a single season or pitch the playoffs its almost as if pitching isn't the problem and hasn't been for a lot of years maybe they should try adding 22 million to the batting order instead of on a pitcher that cant even pitch

like are you kidding all you're hoping for is 120ip for 22 million that might be a fine investment if you're the Mets with a 400 million dollar payroll but it sure as hell isn't when all your floating is 120 million and thats you're 2nd highest paid player 

We spent about 26 million combined on rengifo and Woodruff

Geno suarez hit 50 tanks last year and still has a way better glove at 34 than rengifo does he signed for 15 mil for 1 year we could of probably gotten him for 17.5 

That leaves you with 8 million to replace Woodruff zach littell is still available sure he's not on the same level as woodruff but he still put up 3.5 war last year and ate 190 innings 

Thats a clear bat upgrade and glove over rengifo and **** i would rather gamble on littell for one year over woodruff with his injury history 

So yes I dont like the woodruff signing because its not an efficient way to spend money with our payroll restrictions 

1. Please use some punctuation. It's really hard to read your posts and have to expend additional effort understanding what you're saying. 

2. Your tone tends to be pretty abrasive and combative. We're all fans of the same team. There's no us vs them or fight you have to "win". Just enjoy the discussion and debate with folks who may disagree with you.

[liveforoctober]

1 hour ago, Klantz27 said:

Geno suarez hit 50 tanks last year and still has a way better glove at 34 than rengifo does he signed for 15 mil for 1 year we could of probably gotten him for 17.5 

Eugenio Suarez had the 2nd lowest fielding %, committed the 2nd most errors, and had the lowest dWAR amongst all qualified 3B last year. 

https://www.espn.com/mlb/stats/player/_/view/fielding/position/3b/table/fielding/sort/defWARBR/dir/desc

[Ron Robinsons Beard]

1 hour ago, Klantz27 said:

Geno suarez hit 50 tanks last year and still has a way better glove at 34 than rengifo does he signed for 15 mil for 1 year we could of probably gotten him for 17.5 

Did you look at literally anything stat-related before making this dubious and flat-out incorrect claim? Suarez was once a solid 3B, but is now one of the worst defensive 3B in the majors.

[Klantz27]

13 minutes ago, Ron Robinsons Beard said:

Did you look at literally anything stat-related before making this dubious and flat-out incorrect claim? Suarez was once a solid 3B, but is now one of the worst defensive 3B in the majors.

Rengifo put -5 Drs at 3rd base in 70 games last year and is in fact the worst 3b in the majors suarez might not be good but he sure is slighty better and miles better with the bat but nice try

[Ron Robinsons Beard]

17 minutes ago, Klantz27 said:

Rengifo put -5 Drs at 3rd base in 70 games last year and is in fact the worst 3b in the majors suarez might not be good but he sure is slighty better and miles better with the bat but nice try

So now we've gone from "way better glove at 34" to "slightly better"? 

Things that make you go hmmmmm ...

and wouldn't Mark Vientos at a -10 DRS in a similar amount of innings to Rengifo then qualify as the "worst 3B in the majors" by your metric?

[Jopal78]

2 hours ago, Klantz27 said:

Cruised to 3 division titles with woodruff not even being able to throw 70 innings in a single season or pitch the playoffs its almost as if pitching isn't the problem and hasn't been for a lot of years maybe they should try adding 22 million to the batting order instead of on a pitcher that cant even pitch

like are you kidding all you're hoping for is 120ip for 22 million that might be a fine investment if you're the Mets with a 400 million dollar payroll but it sure as hell isn't when all your floating is 120 million and thats you're 2nd highest paid player 

We spent about 26 million combined on rengifo and Woodruff

Geno suarez hit 50 tanks last year and still has a way better glove at 34 than rengifo does he signed for 15 mil for 1 year we could of probably gotten him for 17.5 

That leaves you with 8 million to replace Woodruff zach littell is still available sure he's not on the same level as woodruff but he still put up 3.5 war last year and ate 190 innings 

Thats a clear bat upgrade and glove over rengifo and **** i would rather gamble on littell for one year over woodruff with his injury history 

So yes I dont like the woodruff signing because its not an efficient way to spend money with our payroll restrictions 

Who else would you get for $22 million total? You are  not going to sign any premier free agent to a multi year deal at that price. There is a reason Littel is sitting home, nobody wants to give him the guarantee he is looking for.
 

Further any  free agent who signed a one year free agent deal this offseason for big dollars has an equal set of question marks about them, and yes, I mean, Suarez too.

[homer]

Oh no. A one-year deal.

[DonBarclay]

1 hour ago, liveforoctober said:

Geno suarez hit 50 tanks last year and still has a way better glove at 34 than rengifo does he signed for 15 mil for 1 year we could of probably gotten him for 17.5 

Suarez had -6 DRS at 3B in 2025. Rengifo had -5, and +5 at 2B. I’d wager that the Brewers see something in his 2B play that they believe they can help translate to 3B. He’s also in his age 29 season vs Suarez turning 35 in July. The defense is not debatable, Rengifo is better. 
 

Offensively, Suarez is probably a lot closer to the .682 OPS player he was in Seattle after the deadline than the .897 in Arizona. He put up .781, .713, .791, .714, and .788 the 5 previous seasons. There’s a reason he only got 1/$15m after a 49 HR season, and it’s not because he loves Cincinnati that much. Simply, MLB teams believe that he’s nowhere close to the player he was for a few months last season. 
 

If its money allocation that concerns you, paying Suarez $15m+ likely would have been a poor use of money. I’m also not convinced that Attanasio spends all of the Woodruff money if it’s not on him, he clearly likes Woody beyond an average player and could’ve easily pocketed half of that. 
 

If you want to complain about having too much pitching and not enough impact bats, the only way the Brewers could address that effectively is in the trade market, not through free agency. That’s a completely different (and more interesting) conversation. 

[tmwiese55]

Yea I was surprised Rengifo checked out bad at 3B too, didn't think they'd get a guy like that. However, in this specific discussion you can't ignore that Rengifo can play every position on the field. Suarez is bad 3B, other options being 1B/DH and we have those spots covered.  Rengifo's flex provides tons of defensive value.

Was even more surprised when I saw Urias get less money than him and that he checks out very good at D at 3B.  I know I'd have gone with Urias.  My guess is they really think there is a Rengifo hitting bounceback possible to be in the realm of his 23/24 seasons. Whereas they think Urias is what he is and doesn't have that upside. 

[Dragonbait]

I also think Woody is good for the younger pitchers like Miz, like Miley was.. Ala a player coach

[brewcrewdue80]

On 2/25/2026 at 9:13 AM, Klantz27 said:

Cruised to 3 division titles with woodruff not even being able to throw 70 innings in a single season or pitch the playoffs its almost as if pitching isn't the problem and hasn't been for a lot of years maybe they should try adding 22 million to the batting order instead of on a pitcher that cant even pitch

like are you kidding all you're hoping for is 120ip for 22 million that might be a fine investment if you're the Mets with a 400 million dollar payroll but it sure as hell isn't when all your floating is 120 million and thats you're 2nd highest paid player 

We spent about 26 million combined on rengifo and Woodruff

So yes I dont like the woodruff signing because its not an efficient way to spend money with our payroll restrictions 

The  Brewers extended a Qualifying Offer to Woodruff.  The price for it was 22M.  

The injury in 2023 to end his season put him out all of 2024. We got 12 starts from him last season returning from the injury that kept him out all of 24.  

Among Brewer starters last year he was 5th in BWar. Among them he was 2nd in Fip behind Logan Henderson's 5 game total. Makes him 1st at 10GS or more.  When on the mound he's worth far more than 22M.  The QO set that price.  The acceptance odds by Woodruff vs not accepting was more than likely seen by the front office to lean towards not accepting.  Woodruff is taking a bigger risk doing so gambling on himself and the health that he can throw 150+ IP leading to a non-restricted FA.  There's no doubt he would have been offered over 50M for 3-4 seasons had he declined the offer.  Gotta run with his confidence a 30GS season is possible and that FA contract starts with 40 something Million a year.

[Turning2]

Woodruff and now Priester with a setback. Really wonder how much bang for the big bucks they're going to get out of Woody. 

 

[wiguy94]

17 minutes ago, Turning2 said:

Woodruff and now Priester with a setback. Really wonder how much bang for the big bucks they're going to get out of Woody. 

 

Setback is extremely dramatic. Murphy said Woodruff is still on pace to be in the opening day rotation. Priester is slightly behind him because they want to build Priester up slowly after a career high in innings last year.

[Underachiever]

2 hours ago, wiguy94 said:

Setback is extremely dramatic. Murphy said Woodruff is still on pace to be in the opening day rotation. Priester is slightly behind him because they want to build Priester up slowly after a career high in innings last year.

setback

noun [ C ]

something that happens that delays or prevents a process from developing

 

What's extremely dramatic about that? And that doesn't address that the video mentioned a wrist issue with Priester, not just bringing him up slowly. What term would you use?

[wiguy94]

27 minutes ago, Underachiever said:

setback

noun [ C ]

something that happens that delays or prevents a process from developing

 

What's extremely dramatic about that? And that doesn't address that the video mentioned a wrist issue with Priester, not just bringing him up slowly. What term would you use?

Priester stopped pitching for like 3-4 days. I'd hardly call that a setback. Woodruff hasn't had any setbacks. He's just being eased in very slowly. Both of these guys are being intentionally built up slowly. That's the process. They aren't being delayed or having their processes prevented.

[Playing Catch]

Is there a database anywhere that tracks total number of IL-days for each pitching staff over the course of several seasons?

I have felt that one reason the Brewers stockpile arms isn't necessarily because it is a fait accompli that guys will lose time for UCL surgeries, Thoracic-outlet, or shoulder-stuff. But ALSO to PREVENT those long-term injuries by being really cautious and giving guys weeks throughout each season to better recover from inflammation. Without looking at data, it doesn't seem like the Brewers have had to face too many season-ending injuries to pitchers, aside from Woody.

With all of the depth they have, starting Woody and/or Priester on the IL has the dual purpose of seeing what they have with the young guys. I think they like to see early whom they can count on later in the season when other guys take their stints on the IL. IF Woody is going to be full-bore by September, I would imagine we'd want him to stay under 120 IPs or so by then.

No one wants a repeat of the opening series of 2025, when they got torpedoed by the Yankees, but 97-wins later, perhaps slow-playing the season wasn't the worst idea. Granted, the division, and the NL generally, looks really tough, so expecting a league-best win total, or walking to a division-title would be folly.