Anderson to DL , Lopez called up from AA

[patrickgpe]

i am a little surprised by this since he was just recently moved over there. thought it made more sense to bring up Wang, although this way they don't have to add anyone to the 40, so i get it.

 

i would hope Espino is moved to the rotation for now, instead of Hader, which i am sure what fans will clamor for.

[monty57]

I'm one of those fans who will clamor for Hader. He needs innings and is a much bigger part of our future than Espino, so let's see what he can do as a starter.

 

Also, I'm excited to see how Lopez does. He has a lot of talent, so hopefully his fall off last year was simply a product of Colorado Springs and he can prove to be a solid MLB pitcher.

[MillerParkSouth]

I'm going to the game on Monday, which was supposed to be Chase's next start and the prospect of seeing Espino isn't very exciting at all. Give Hader a shot.

[MrTPlush]

Josh Hader in the rotation? The guy with a 7.5 BB/9 and a 5.5 K/9 so far at the MLB level? Incredibly small sample I know. However he is sort of proving exactly why he is in the bullpen. Unless he can start limiting walks he won't be getting into the rotation.

[patrickgpe]

if the brewers weren't in 1st, i would say fine let Hader start. but they need to put out their best option to win every day and not just put Hader out there to give him a shot. Maybe Espino struggles and then maybe Hader would be the best option, or maybe Blazek would be next in line. i'm not sure. I am OK with Espino though for now.

[brewmann04]

Let Hader get a spot start to see what he can do.

[MillerParkSouth]

Hader is the future and an 8 inning sample isn't enough to sway me of that. Espino has done nothing so far to indicate he deserves another start, so they may as well go with their #1 pitching prospect. I'd be fine with bringing Wilkerson up for a look too since he's rule 5 eligible after this season.

[trwi7]

if the brewers weren't in 1st, i would say fine let Hader start. but they need to put out their best option to win every day and not just put Hader out there to give him a shot. Maybe Espino struggles and then maybe Hader would be the best option, or maybe Blazek would be next in line. i'm not sure. I am OK with Espino though for now.

 

I don't know how anyone can watch Espino pitch and think, yeah, that guy is our best option. Guy throwing 88 mph meatballs down the middle that typically get sent to neighboring states (wind dependent) is not our best option.

 

Yeah, Hader may struggle and walk some guys but at least he has the stuff to actually get hitters out.

 

Espino has a 4.60 ERA (lucky because the Cubs crushed him but it was cold and the wind was blowing in), a 6.71 FIP and a 5.57 xFIP and he's been getting lucky with a .191 BABIP.

 

Guy shouldn't even be in the majors, much less starting.

[FVBrewerFan]

Hader is not stretched out. I cant imagine they would play yo-yo with a young pitcher like that. Start season as SP, then move to BP, then back as a starter all within a couple months. Possible I guess, but I don't see it.

[monty57]

Josh Hader in the rotation? The guy with a 7.5 BB/9 and a 5.5 K/9 so far at the MLB level? Incredibly small sample I know. However he is sort of proving exactly why he is in the bullpen. Unless he can start limiting walks he won't be getting into the rotation.

 

Having some trouble in your first 8.1 innings in the majors isn't unique. Even with those walks he still has a 0.96 WHIP, as MLB hitters are having a hard time getting a hit off of him. Plus, the alternative is Espino.

 

There are a number of posters here who think Hader is destined for the bullpen. Maybe that will be the case, but he is rated one of the top prospects in baseball for a reason. Everything he has done in his career has people believing that he is special, so let's let him get a couple of starts to see what he can do. If he truly cannot throw strikes, then he should be sent back down to the minors to work things out, as walking batters is just as bad for late-inning relievers as it is for starters.

[monty57]

Hader is not stretched out. I cant imagine they would play yo-yo with a young pitcher like that. Start season as SP, then move to BP, then back as a starter all within a couple months. Possible I guess, but I don't see it.

 

I agree that they are screwing with him unnecessarily. Forget the bullpen and just let him start, as that is where we hope his future lies. The "yo-yo" action has limited his innings enough that he could finish out the season in the rotation and his innings would be right about where they should be so he can start next year in the MLB rotation.

[A Swing and A Drive]

I agree with those saying that Hader would need to get stretched out before he could make a start realistically.

 

Don't want to put him in a position to fail or worse, get injured.

[tmwiese55]

I'd just go with Hader and see what happens. Of course you can't plan on more than 3 innings right away. Make sure to have Espino/Lopez ready that day as well. If he does ok you can stretch him out as you go by getting a little more each time. If he does well you can just let him keep starting until his innings limit and pull Garza out. If he fails then go back to the pen to finish the year.

 

Espino has no chance so if they don't go this route I'd prefer trying Lopez for a couple and Woodruff whenever he's back.

[Outlander]

I don't see Hader or Espino making the next start. Think they are keeping the 40 man spot open for Blazek but it wouldn't make sense to call him up today after he just started. If Lopez pitches well then I think Espino is back down but at the very least they have some guys in the bullpen now with options with Lopez/Espino/Suter/Hader.

[newrivervalley]

Espino deserves a start. Lopez deserves a start. Yungman deserves a start. Nice situation.

[And That]

You can get Hader back up to 90 pitches over the course of a few abbreviated starts, and you have Espino to basically piggyback him in those starts.

[liveforoctober]

Hader is the future and an 8 inning sample isn't enough to sway me of that. Espino has done nothing so far to indicate he deserves another start, so they may as well go with their #1 pitching prospect. I'd be fine with bringing Wilkerson up for a look too since he's rule 5 eligible after this season.

 

Not to be too nitpicky but you contradicted yourself a bit here. 8 innings isn't enough to change your opinion on Hader but it has only taken 15 innings for Espino to prove he doesn't belong?

[reillymcshane]

A person I know with some connections to the Brewers told me about a year ago that there was a lot of talk within the organization that Lopez was destined for the bullpen. His fine 2015 aside, he's never developed much beyond a two pitch guy (fastball/curveball). The thought is that if he can just continue to refine and repeat those pitches, he could be a great reliever.

 

Now, the team was good waiting to see if Lopez could develop a better change up and better command - but this season has been mixed. Add in the need for relievers.... well, there you go.

 

There was a nice article on Brew Crew Ball about Lopez and his potential bullpen role just a few days ago.

 

https://www.brewcrewball.com/2017/6/26/15876944/milwaukee-brewers-may-be-preparing-jorge-lopez-for-a-role-in-the-bullpen

[trwi7]

You can get Hader back up to 90 pitches over the course of a few abbreviated starts, and you have Espino to basically piggyback him in those starts.

 

Or Suter. We have multiple options in the bullpen to eat up innings while Hader steadily increases his pitch count/work load.

[MillerParkSouth]

Espino is a 30 year old minor league journeyman who struggles to break 90 with his fastball. He is in a completely different situation than Hader. If Espino were a young prospect with some velocity and potential, I'd say give him a longer leash, but that's not who he is.

[MrTPlush]

I think the Brewers are trying to casually compete this year with internal or low key moves. Hader and Lopez were moved to the bullpen to help the bullpen. They must believe they can help the starting rotation by other means. Sure Hader could go to the rotation, but then you hurt the bullpen. I would much prefer Hader in the bullpen plus someone else starting vs. Hader in the rotation plus a disaster in the bullpen. Just keep Hader in his 2017 long term home without the flip flopping(for this year at least).

[MillerParkSouth]

The org still seems to think that Hader's long-term home is in the rotation, so with Anderson likely being out for a couple of months, give him a shot. Unless they think Woodruff will be back in a couple of weeks.

[djoctagone]

i'm thinking that taylor jungmann gets the start monday. he last pitched sunday, so we'll see if he's held back or on a restricted pitch count tomorrow in omaha.

 

jungmann will enter 2018 with no options remaining, so this is a good time for the brewers to see what they've got in him.

[liveforoctober]

Espino is a 30 year old minor league journeyman who struggles to break 90 with his fastball. He is in a completely different situation than Hader. If Espino were a young prospect with some velocity and potential, I'd say give him a longer leash, but that's not who he is.

 

I'm not at all disagreeing with you.. because that makes sense. Except I am, because our opening day starter this year makes it not true. My assumption is that Espino is exactly what we think he is but I think Milwaukee will give him a much longer leash than any of us fans would because that is what teams in a rebuild do. Yes we are in first place and want to win, but we are also rebuilding and will continue to let guys have an ample shot to prove themselves, be it a young hotshot with a left handed + fastball or an 'old' castoff with a forgettable one.

[dacbrewers]

Espino deserves a start. Lopez deserves a start. Yungman deserves a start. Nice situation.

How exactly does Lopez deserve a start? He has trouble at AA and is even worse when he pitches in AAA. If anyone deserved a spot it was Wilkerson.