Brewers expected to promote intriguing pitching prospects.
The Brewers are set to elevate pitching prospect Robert Gasser to the majors, according to Curt Hogg of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. The left-hander will start Friday’s game, marking his major league debut. He is not currently on the Brewers’ 40-man roster, so they will have to find a method to add him.
The Padres selected Gasser, who turns 25 this month, in the 2021 draft. They selected him as the 71st overall choice in Competitive Balance Round B from the University of Houston. About a year later, he joined the Brewers as part of the 2022 deadline transaction that sent Josh Hader to San Diego.
When the Padres traded him, he was in High-A, but the Brewers quickly promoted him to Double-A and Triple-A. He concluded 2022 with a 3.94 earned run average over 137 innings. He struck out 29.7% of batters and walked 9% of them.
Last year, he spent the entire season with Triple-A Nashville, pitching 135 1/3 innings in 26 games with a 3.79 ERA. He struck out 28% of batters who approached the plate while issuing free passes only 8.4% of the time.
The lefty was in contention for a rotation position to begin the season, but he was sidelined at the end of March with a bone spur in his left elbow. He didn’t make his first Triple-A start of 2024 until April 24, and he’s now pitched three times, each for four innings. He hasn’t been very sharp, allowing six walks and four home runs over 12 innings, but he has struck out 17.
Despite his moniker, Gasser’s fastball rarely exceeds 89 to 93 miles per hour. However, he has a four-seamer, a two-seamer, a cutter, a slider, and a changeup, which allows him to keep batters off balance. Coming into the season, he was listed as the club’s No. 5 prospect by Baseball America, No. 8 by FanGraphs, and No. 7 by Keith Law of The Athletic. MLB Pipeline presently has him ranked fifth.
Since late last year, the Brewers have dealt with a variety of movable elements in their rotation. Brandon Woodruff needed shoulder surgery and will miss most, if not all, of the 2024 season. Corbin Burnes was dealt to the Orioles over the summer. Wade Miley has undergone Tommy John surgery since the season began, and DL Hall and Jakob Junis are also on the injured list.
On top of those ailments, Freddy Peralta will miss one turn in the rotation. He received a five-game ban for his role in the altercation between the Brewers and Rays approximately a week ago. He first contested the suspension and faced the Cubs on Sunday before beginning to serve it on Monday.
Gasser’s elevation could be a temporary one to cover for Peralta. For the time being, however, he will join Bryse Wilson, Colin Rea, Joe Ross, and Tobias Myers in the rotation. Myers has a 6.23 ERA after three starts and might be sent down instead of Gasser, especially if he struggles against the Cardinals on Thursday night.
Even if Gasser is optioned after just one outing, opportunities may arise later in the year. Ross will most likely reach a workload limit at some point, having pitched sparingly over the past two seasons while coming from his second career Tommy John surgery. In general, pitcher injuries are unavoidable, but Milwaukee should also see Hall and Junis return from the IL later this season.
Time will tell how much time Gasser devotes to the majors in 2024. But for the time being, the young southpaw is looking forward to facing the division rival Cardinals on Friday at American Family Field.
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