After a brutal start to the season, this Brewers reliever is starting to look like his former self

At one point, it felt like Joel Payamps was destined to be one of Milwaukee’s go-to arms in the 2025 season. Coming off a strong 2023 campaign and building on his reliability in 2024, the veteran right-hander seemed poised to reprise his role as one of the Brewers’ most trusted bullpen options. 

However, Payamps quickly found himself spiraling. His command wavered, his confidence appeared rattled, the consistency faded, and the home runs began to pile up. By the end of April, Payamps was sitting on an ugly 9.45 ERA across 13.1 innings with 12 strikeouts and a 1.58 WHIP. Seemingly becoming a liability when deployed.

Manager Pat Murphy didn’t hide his concerns, and it quickly became clear that Payamps’ role in high-leverage moments needed to be stripped away. Milwaukee, desperate to patch up a bullpen, had no choice but to turn to 2025 breakout relievers Nick Mears and Abner Uribe to cover the hole that Payamps’ poor performance had left in the bullpen.

However, throughout several rounds of roster moves, Payamps, who has no minor league options remaining, survived. And now, we’re beginning to see a change in narrative.

Brewers' bullpen could get a boost if Payamps’ resurgence holds up

Joel Payamps, while no longer in the spotlight, is starting to string together some quietly solid outings. Since the calendar flipped to May, he’s made five appearances, logging 3.2 innings while allowing just one earned run, a solo homer. More importantly, he’s punched out four batters in those limited chances, showing sharper command and more life on his pitches.

It’s a small sample, but the Brewers might be onto something with this new, reduced role for Payamps. Payamps went through a similar period of struggles last season, but finished the season by not allowing a single earned run in September. Murphy had rightfully removed Payamps from most high-leverage situations, but that is starting to change. He was called upon to cover an important eighth inning in the Brewers’ win on Sunday afternoon, and delivered with a scoreless frame.

To be frank, Milwaukee needs every bullpen arm to contribute if they’re going to stay afloat in a highly competitive NL Central. While Payamps was a major liability in April, writing him off completely is beginning to feel premature, especially now that he’s showing flashes of stability.

The Brewers’ bullpen has started to find its footing, and if Payamps can return to the player that he was in 2023 and 2024, Milwaukee might have one of the better groups of relievers in all of MLB.