Brewers: All Aboard The Corbin Burnes Hype Train!

Corbin Burnes just had his first appearance in the Brewers Blue-Gold World Series during Summer Camp and the hype train is taking off.

All aboard! Hop on the Corbin Burnes hype train, because the train is about to leave the station and reach full speed pretty quickly. Burnes is in a battle for a starting rotation spot for the Brewers and he’s doing everything possible to prove himself worthy of the job.

Back in spring training, Burnes showed up with a fresh mindset after a tough 2019 season mentally, and with a new emphasis on using his slider more often. The results so far have been outstanding.

Back in spring, through four appearances covering 10 innings, Burnes had allowed just one run, good enough for a 0.90 ERA with 13 strikeouts and three walks.

As Brewers Summer Camp has unfolded, it’s become clear that Burnes has not lost what he found over the offseason and during the spring.

Blue-Gold Series

Burnes got the start for Team Gold in Game 2 of the Blue-Gold series the Brewers have put together and he did not disappoint.

He threw four innings, did not allow a single baserunner, and struck out seven of the 12 batters he faced.

Burnes’ stuff was sharp and nasty. He struck out Manny Pina on a high fastball with late armside run. He struck out Christian Yelich with a nasty slider low at the ankles. Time and time again, the pitches Burnes was throwing were perfectly executed. He hung one slider early on, which led to a deep fly ball to the warning track, but it was an out.

The issue with Burnes last year was that his fastball stayed pretty straight and he couldn’t command it in the zone. That did not appear to be an issue Wednesday night as he was throwing his fastball anywhere in the zone he wanted with plenty of movement.

The lofty ceiling that Burnes has is incredibly exciting. He has the stuff, the size, and the stamina to be a frontline starting pitcher in this league. While many, including myself, thought he would take the steps to reach that ceiling in 2019, he struggled.

Those issues that plagued him last year appear to be behind him, which is great news. When Burnes is at his best, he’s practically unhittable, and he was unhittable on Wednesday in Game 2. Eric Sogard was mentioning how impressive Burnes was, Brent Suter couldn’t stop talking about it either. All of the Brewers can’t help but be impressed with Burnes’ stuff and potential.

I boldly predicted last year that Corbin Burnes would compete for and win the NL Cy Young award. That didn’t happen. However, I still maintain that Burnes has the talent and the ability to win that award someday. Will it happen in 2020? I might not be feeling that bold again, but if he keeps on pitching like he did Wednesday night, perhaps that can change.

With just over a week until the season starts, Corbin Burnes just made a strong statement that he belongs in that starting rotation, where he’s competing for the final spot with Freddy Peralta. Peralta is going to have to answer when he gets his opportunity in this series. If he doesn’t pitch well, Burnes could lock up that 5th starter spot.

Get on board the bandwagon. Get on the hype train. 2020 is looking like the year of Corbin Burnes.

If the Brewers can get Burnes to pitch to his full potential this year, watch out. This is going to be fun.