Brewers Reset Roster for Maximum Utility as Pennant Race Heats Up

It's not yet the official return of Brandon Woodruff. That, in all likelihood, will come this weekend in Miami—poignantly, the last place he threw a big-league pitch, on Sept. 23, 2023. However, Woodruff was officially pronounced ready for reactivation, and his rehab assignment(s) is (are) over. Arriving with him in the Brewers clubhouse in New York Tuesday was familiar face Easton McGee, replacing the injured Rob Zastryzny as bullpen depth (at least for now), and super-versatile utility man Anthony Seigler. Gone, likely for good, is little-used bench piece Daz Cameron.

Woodruff will re-enter the Brewers rotation when he rejoins the team officially, which might spell the end (at least for now) of Chad Patrick's time with the parent club. However, the injury to Zastryzny could increase the chances of Patrick sliding into the bullpen, rather than being optioned to Triple-A Nashville. In any case, the team hopes the return of Woodruff will be more than just a feel-good story. He can and should be the first of multiple upgrades to the roster this month, as the Crew assert themselves as serious contenders in the crowded National League. Seigler can and should be another.

Already 26 years old, Seigler is no spring chicken, for a player just getting set to make his debut. However, he's shown multiple facets of value this year in Nashville. A part-time catcher, he's also a competent defender at second or third base, and can play the outfield when needed. He's hit .277/.416/.465 this season at Triple A. Pat Murphy has had almost no use for his entire bench over the last three weeks, which is a reflection of how well his starters have played. However, it's also an indictment of the play of Eric Haase, Jake Bauers and (especially) Andruw Monasterio, as well as Cameron. They didn't have clear roles Murphy felt they could fill competently, so he largely left them on the bench every day.

With three long months left in the 162-game grind, that's not a sustainable plan. Blake Perkins is almost set to return to the positional mix, so over the next few days, the team will try to assess whether Seigler is a better use of the roster spot currently allocated to Monasterio. When Perkins does return, it'll be at the expense of either Seigler or Monasterio. Each can be optioned to the minors, and perhaps it'll just be Seigler going right back down, but if he looks like a useful utility man, Murphy and the front office might elect to roll with Brice Turang as their backup shortstop and have Seigler serve as depth around the rest of the infield. Monasterio has done little to acquit himself as a big-leaguer this season, and is neither a switch-hitter nor a speedster in league with Seigler. The latter stole 20 bases in 23 tries this year for the Sounds; he can have some value as a fresh pair of legs off the bench. That he can also rotate in at catcher gives the team incrementally more in-game flexibility, too.

Zastryzny's injury, a stress reaction in his ribcage, is unfortunate because he's pitched well for the team. However, he wasn't in a high-leverage role, and McGee (or any of a handful of others) can easily soak up the workload he'd been assigned over the next few weeks. The Brewers will certainly hope to add a better pitcher who (by pushing everyone down a rung on the ladder) pushes Zastryzny and each of his replacements off the roster by the trade deadline on July 31, anyway.

Milwaukee is gearing up. They survived a rocky start to the season, and have been the best team in the NL Central over the last six weeks or so. They just need to keep that up for another three months, and on Tuesday, they prepared themselves to do so.