Who Will Return to the Brewers’ Lineup?

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Photo via Twitter / Brewers

Freddy Peralta

Freddy Peralta

History suggests the Brewers will almost certainly make one or more moves between now and Tuesday’s MLB trade deadline, but down the stretch the impact of players rejoining the team might be bigger than the contributions of anyone they acquire this week.

While all of this could change quickly, to date the Brewers have not been publicly connected to any of the major names being discussed in the final hours and days before rosters are locked in for the season. If anything, the Brewers are likely to look for bullpen help and/or position player depth to give Craig Counsell more options to use down the stretch.

Internally, however, the Brewers are on the verge of several notable returns. The first among them is expected later this week, when Freddy Peralta will be activated off the 60-day disabled list. Peralta, an All Star in 2021, hasn’t pitched in a major league game in more than two months since complaining of shoulder tightness. He’s been nearly spotless across two rehab outings for AAA Nashville, however, prompting the Brewers to return him to their roster despite the fact that he’s not quite stretched out: Peralta’s last outing was just 52 pitches, so he’ll need some time to build back to a normal starting workload.

Peralta is not, however, the only starting pitcher the Brewers might get back this month. Adrian Houser, who has not pitched in a game since reporting an elbow issue at the end of June, has resumed throwing bullpen sessions and is on a progression that will likely send him out on a rehab assignment in the coming weeks. His return is not as imminent as Peralta’s, but still seems likely to happen this month.

With Peralta and Houser out, the Brewers briefly appeared poised to do something they haven’t done often in recent years, going down to a four-man rotation for a brief stretch in the coming weeks. Upcoming off days on the schedule would allow them to do that without pitching anyone on short rest, but nonetheless it would have been an unusual move for a team that has often trended in the other direction in recent years. If anything, the recent-era Brewers have been more likely to move to a six-man rotation and get their starters extra rest than to use off days to work their top starters more often. That expanded rotation is still something they’re likely to consider once Houser is back.

Meanwhile, the list of rehabbing Brewers also includes several pitchers that could provide bullpen help soon:

• Jake Cousins is attempting to rehab an elbow injury without undergoing Tommy John surgery and pitched for AAA Nashville on Friday.
• Justin Topa has made four rehab appearances, including the last three with Nashville, in his effort to return from an elbow injury that derailed his 2021 season.
• Luis Perdomo has been on a rehab assignment with Nashville for nearly three weeks now, pitching on back-to-back days on Wednesday and Thursday and logging multiple innings on Sunday.

With as many as five pitchers potentially rejoining the team in the weeks ahead, the Brewers are about to face a significant roster crunch. In addition to making room on the 26-man MLB roster for these players to come back the Brewers will also need to make some room on the 40-man: Players on the 60-day injured list don’t count toward the 40-man roster limit, but the Brewers will need to clear space for them once they’re able to return. Peralta, Cousins and Topa are all currently on the 60-day injured list, but at present the Brewers only have one open 40-man spot (and that could be filled by trade this week). 

The Brewers will almost certainly be working the phones in the final hours leading up to the trade deadline: They’ve made at least one deal in this period every year since 2010. Even if they have a quiet week on the transaction front, however, pitching reinforcements are on the way in the weeks ahead.