Brandon Woodruff is a Monumental (Re)Addition to the Brewers

Brandon Woodruff is a fan favorite in Milwaukee whom many will be ecstatic to see back in a Brewers uniform. A nuggety ace with incredible raw stuff, Woodruff's humble attitude endears him to fans and teammates alike. His ability as a pitcher, though, will define this deal, and it could be one of the best deals Milwaukee has struck for various reasons.

He’s Already Shown He Can Bounce Back
Woodruff is coming off a serious shoulder injury, with the shoulder joint potentially career-ending for someone like Woodruff, who relies heavily on his velocity and high spin rate on his fastball to attack opposing hitters. That being said, Woodruff returned with aplomb this past season to a 2.59 ERA over 55 ⅔ innings. 

He showed he could come back from a shoulder injury and pitch like an elite starter, with his September form pre-injury on track to bring him a pitcher of the month award, while his WAR, if extrapolated across a full body of work (180 innings,) would have been far and away the best pitcher in either league at 7.2 WAR. A pitcher returning from serious injury to produce those numbers may be able to do so again.

His Evolving Arsenal
Woodruff’s breakthrough with the Brewers came from one of the best fastballs in the major leagues, with a low VAA, high spin, and high velocity that he carried deep into his starts. In 2023, he used his changeup more than ever before to quite devastating results. Batters hit just .098/.118 against it, completely neutralizing left-handers and causing a swing and miss 38% of the time. He didn't apply it much against right-handers, but the fastball and sinker did more than enough damage, either causing swing and miss or eliciting weak ground balls.

As a result, Woodruff isn’t merely a strikeout pitcher but has the tools to generate weak contact and double play ground balls when men find a way on base. He’s a complete pitcher who can get outs in various ways, allowing him to go deeper into games than most recent Brewers starters. He’s a workhorse, and if the Brewers can return him to anything close to his former glory, they’ll be smiling from ear to ear.

He May Yet Return For the 2024 Playoffs
The Brewers have many questions this season, but they have a chance to take significant offensive strides with their recent signings that could leave them as a better all-round team than 2023, despite losing Corbin Burnes. The upgrades at first base, middle infield, and the outfield mean they’ll be confident of retaking their places in the playoff race amongst the lackadaisical NL Central. The Cubs lost their second-best pitcher and best hitter from last year, the Cardinals have replaced Montgomery with Sonny Gray and some low-quality innings eaters, while the Reds have taken promising steps but haven’t gone all in by any means.

Thus, there is a notable chance that Brandon Woodruff could be healthy in time for a late-season run in 2024 and potentially a playoff charge. Many other Brewers may be pressing claims for a starting rotation spot by that point, but if the Brewers can ramp Woodruff up in time to go hard in August and September, the rotation will take a massive leap forward. July will mark nine months since his surgery and may mark the point at which he can step up his preparation for the season.

The Brewers 2025 Rotation May Have the Best Raw Stuff In Baseball
Even if Woodruff doesn’t return to full force in 2024, the Brewers can dream of a rotation to be genuinely feared again in 2025, combined with a significantly more productive offense. DL Hall and Jacob Misiorowski are the only prospects with 80-grade fastballs, and their stuff doesn’t end there with at least two other plus or plus-plus pitches each. Early clips of Misiorowski seem to show more body control, while Hall made technical adjustments last season to improve his command, which showed up far better in the majors in a small sample.

A quartet of Freddy Peralta, Brandon Woodruff, DL Hall, and Jacob Misiorowski could be the most nasty combination in baseball, which could wreak havoc anywhere they land. Alongside an offense featuring young talents such as Tyler Black, Brock Wilken, Joey Ortiz, Sal Frelick, Joey Wiemer, William Contreras, and more, they make a team that looks not just playoff-ready but World Series-ready. 

In short, Brandon Woodruff presents a real opportunity, at least in 2025, if the chips fall correctly, and perhaps in 2024, to take this Brewers team to a new level. He adds a strong clubhouse presence and an experienced hand for the young Brewers pitchers to learn from. He brings so many qualities to the table that you can easily dream of, and you can’t help but root for him.

There is a large enough possibility that he never finds his form of yesteryear, but baseball is a sport to dream on. As a human being, Brandon Woodruff deserves every ounce of fortune and goodwill that comes his way. If he doesn't reach his potential, we should still celebrate having this man in Milwaukee every second he is here.

As an aside, this may also be the reason for the delay in signing Gary Sanchez, needing the 40-man space to sign Woodruff before assigning him to the 60-day IL.

What do you think of the Brewers signing of Brandon Woodruff? And what do you think his potential with the Brewers over the next two years? Let us know in the comments below!