Robert Gasser settled in at the University Houston and turned himself into the 71st overall pick in the 2021 Draft, taken in that spot by the Padres. San Diego moved the left-hander to Milwaukee a year later as part of a four-player package for All-Star closer Josh Hader, and the Brewers got more aggressive with him, getting him to Double-A and Triple-A by the end of his first full season. Gasser spent the entire 2023 campaign with Nashville, where he led Triple-A pitchers with 166 strikeouts and finished second among qualifiers with a 3.79 ERA over 135 1/3 innings.
The 6-foot southpaw throws both a four-seamer and sinker around 91-94 mph -- the former working up in the zone and the latter dropping low to limit damage (no batter managed an extra-base hit off Gasser’s sinker in 2023). He uses both more as table-setters while his 79-82 mph slider can be a true put away pitch -- one that can run away from lefties or backfoot righties with sweep and even some lift. He’s added an upper-80s cutter that hovers right around the 0-inch horizontal mark, giving him a pitch he can pinpoint with relative ease. His upper-80s changeup has dwindled in usage as Gasser has worked on its command.
Walks have never been a huge roadblock in Gasser’s profile, and his solid control has continually fueled his high strikeout numbers and climb toward the bigs. Without a true second plus pitch, the left-hander doesn’t have a particularly high ceiling, but he’s already close to meeting his floor as a backend starter. He should be a factor in Milwaukee’s rotation quickly in 2024.