Milwaukee Brewers: Which Pitchers Will Make the Postseason Roster?

Who will occupy the final two spots on the Milwaukee Brewers playoff roster?

The final two pitching spots on the Milwaukee Brewers postseason roster will be hard to determine. Just like last year, the Brewers are going to be faced with some tough cuts from the roster in the playoffs.

With that said, who are the two most likely options to earn a trip to October?

11) Jay Jackson, RHP

Jay Jackson is a very good bet to make the postseason roster at this point.

Jackson has been among the Brewers best performers down the stretch this year. He’s pitched 17 1/3 innings in August-September, posting a 3.12 ERA. He has had some issues with walks in recent games (his BB/9 rate since August 1 is over five), but he’s missing a ton of bats (14.54 K/9 rate).

Given his stuff, his performances in key moments, and the Brewers relative lack of other right-handed options out of the pen, Jackson has likely earned himself a role on the playoff roster.

12) Gio Gonzalez, LHP

The final spot on the postseason roster among pitchers is a close call between Gio Gonzalez, and Chase Anderson. However, given what he was able to do for Milwaukee last year in the playoffs, and so far this year, Gonzalez deserves the nod.

Gonzalez has been a solid option all year as a starter. Though he’s had trouble staying healthy, he’s helped stabilize the rotation when he’s been available.

Gonzalez has produced 1.3 fWAR this season over 82 2/3 innings this year. Anderson, who’s pitched almost 50 innings more than him, has produced 1.2 fWAR.

In their underlying numbers, Gonzalez has been the better of the two over the course of the season. Anderson does hold the superior K/9 rate (8.19 to 7.95) and walk rate (3.22 to 3.81), but Gonzalez has done a much better job of keeping the ball in the park (HR/9 0.98 to 1.48) and his FIP is quite a bit better too (4.14 to 4.79).

In the final two months of the season, Gonzalez has increased the gap between the two, though Anderson’s worse numbers do largely stem from a blowout loss to the Washington Nationals in August.

Gonzalez has also shown in a few recent outings out of the pen, and in the playoffs last year, that he could work as a multi-inning reliever behind someone like Brandon Woodruff or Adrian Houser. That flexibility, when coupled with his better production, gives him the edge for the final roster spot.

Next Up Option

Two pitchers could still factor into the postseason roster: Chase Anderson and Matt Albers.

Anderson could still make it if the Brewers decide they’d rather feature 13 pitchers instead of 12. That may make some sense too considering the talent among their pitchers is much stronger than their position players on the bench.

Albers, however, has likely played himself off of the postseason roster due to the major struggles he’s endured down the stretch. Albers has been the team’s worst pitcher in fWAR (-0.5) since August 1st thanks to a 7.53 ERA, 6.92 FIP, and a BB/9 of rate of almost nine per nine (8.79).

If another pitcher earns a chance, it’s almost certain to be Anderson at this point.

The Milwaukee Brewers will have some tough decisions to make with this pitching staff. Pretty much the entire group has positively contributed down the stretch.