Matt Garza to the 15-Day Disabled List with Strained Oblique

Jul 28, 2014; St. Petersburg, FL, USA; Milwaukee Brewers pitcher Matt Garza (22) in the dugout during the first inning against the Tampa Bay Rays at Tropicana Field. Mandatory Credit: Kim Klement-USA TODAY Sports

The Brewers are going to have to weather their first real starting-pitching injury of the 2014 season as they placed Matt Garza on the 15-day disabled list with a strained oblique.

Garza had been fantastic in his last three starts, allowing just two runs on eight hits over 21 innings of work. He took himself out of the game after the sixth inning on Sunday while throwing a 1-hit shutout against St. Louis.

Garza, who signed a four-year, $50 million contract with Milwaukee in the off-season, has a 3.58 ERA (3.53 FIP) in 145 innings for the Crew this season. His record stands at 7-7.

The Brewers called up Rob Wooten to take Garza’s place on the roster.

Wooten has only been down at AAA since Jeremy Jeffress was called up on July 21st. Wooten has a 4.36 ERA out of the bullpen this season in 33 innings of work (but a 2.50 FIP).

Recalling Wooten from Nashville likely means that Marco Estrada will be returning to the rotation for the time being, however the team hasn’t confirmed this.

Since moving to the pen Estrada has barely been used, but he was the worst starter in the National League prior to being demoted.

Personally, I’d rather have seen the team call up Mike Fiers to take Garza’s starts. Fiers, in 102 innings in Nashville, has a 2.55 ERA and 2.85 FIP while leading the league in strike outs.

His high minor-league strike out numbers have never translated into big-league strike outs, but I’d rather watch Fiers out there in the rotation than Estrada after what he showed for 107 innings.

So loyal Reviewing the Brew reader, who do you think should replace Garza in the rotation? Let us know below.