Milwaukee Brewers right-handed pitcher Brandon Woodruff is optimistically facing the latest setback in his attempt to return to baseball.
Woodruff was about to pitch again in the Major Leagues for the first time since September 2023, when he was hit in the elbow of his pitching arm by a batted ball with an exit velocity of 108 mph during a rehab appearance on Tuesday for the Nashville Sounds, a Triple-A team. This caused a bruised elbow, which will delay his return once again.Woodruff, who missed the entire 2024 season due to a shoulder injury, has not set a date for his return from this latest issue. He hopes the swelling will subside before he throws again. Brewers manager Pat Murphy mentioned the possibility of Woodruff starting to pitch again early next week and could have a bullpen session by June 17 at the latest. The next step would likely involve live batting practice and a rehab assignment.“That’s life, you know? I could have been walking down the street and broken my ankle getting off the curb or something. It’s about putting everything in perspective. I was lucky to get out unscathed,” Woodruff commented.
Brandon Woodruff
Woodruff, 32, is grateful that the tests only revealed a bruise. He realizes it could have been a much more serious injury.“What we don’t want, neither for him nor for us, is for this to become that we rush him in some way, shape, or form, right?” said Murphy.
Pat Murphy
Woodruff underwent surgery to repair the anterior capsule in his throwing shoulder after the 2023 season, a problem that caused him to miss the Brewers’ loss in the 2023 National League Wild Card Series to the Arizona Diamondbacks. He was hoping to return early in the 2025 season.“He hit me in a place where it didn’t cause any damage. I didn’t know it at the time. My biggest fear was that it would break and probably cost me the rest of the season,” Woodruff explained.
Brandon Woodruff
It didn’t work that way.
On two occasions, Woodruff has suffered an unrelated injury while pitching in what he believed would be his final rehab appearance before pitching again in the majors. Last month he had tendinitis in his right ankle. Now he is facing the elbow problem.
Woodruff has a 3-1 record with an ERA of 2.11 in nine minor league appearances, but a guy whose fastball velocity has topped 95 mph throughout his major league career hasn’t come close to that level in his most recent outings. It also has 34 strikeouts in 38 1/3 innings in the minors this year. Woodruff has 788 strikeouts in 680 1/3 innings during his 130 career appearances with Milwaukee.“It was horrible at the time because I essentially got to the finish line the last two times and something came up,” Woodruff said. “Stay positive. I see it as my luck will eventually change, but man, that’s baseball. Things like that can happen. Take it as it is and just show up the next day and move on.”
Brandon Woodruff
Woodruff acknowledges that his velocity has decreased a bit as he returns, but he believes that will change once he’s off the injured list and back in a Brewers uniform.“In the last few outings, what we saw, obviously, is being held back a bit,” Murphy said. “He had an ankle situation in the last few outings. We saw that things aren’t ‘the old Woody’ and, I mean, not yet. So, we’ll deal with that when he gets here, but his stuff will ramp up once he gets here.”
Pat Murphy
Woodruff isn’t the only notable player the Brewers hope to get back. Murphy said Saturday that outfielders Garrett Mitchell and Blake Perkins could begin playing games later this month, first in Arizona and then in Nashville, with the hope that they could be activated before the All-Star break. Perkins has yet to play this season after fracturing his right shin in batting practice earlier in the spring. Mitchell is dealing with a left oblique injury and last played on April 25th.“Once you get here, it’s a different animal,” Woodruff said. “The adrenaline pumps a lot more, so I expect a little jump there.”
Brandon Woodruff
