Brewers Face Woodruff Gamble With World Series Roster Call Due Before Game 1
Two-time All-Star Brandon Woodruff, who has not pitched since July 4, pushed his case for a World Series roster spot with 23 pitches in live batting practice Tuesday — but Milwaukee must decide whether the reward is worth a roster risk they cannot undo.
The Milwaukee Brewers open the World Series against the Tampa Bay Rays on Friday night, and one of the toughest calls on their roster belongs to a pitcher who has not thrown a competitive pitch in more than three months. Brandon Woodruff, a two-time All-Star, has been sidelined since July 4 with a shoulder problem that was once expected to end his season with surgery. Instead, he worked his way back to the mound and threw 23 pitches in a live batting practice session on Tuesday, keeping his Fall Classic hopes alive. The dilemma is the fine print. Under MLB rules, a team can replace an injured player mid-series only for an acute, non-chronic injury — meaning that if Woodruff's shoulder flares up again, the Brewers would be stuck playing a man short with no replacement. "I could see it either way," Woodruff said Thursday. President of baseball operations Matt Arnold acknowledged the pull of the upside: the healthy version of Woodruff, whose 3.10 career ERA is the best in franchise history over at least 500 innings, is exactly the arm a contender wants. Woodruff and Christian Yelich are the only players still around from the start of Milwaukee's run of eight playoff berths in nine seasons. He is 1-4 with a 3.18 ERA in eight career postseason appearances.