Breaking down Jacob Misiorowski's most recent starts in Triple-A

It's a day that Milwaukee Brewers fans have long been waiting for; Jacob Misiorowski is set to make his MLB debut this evening. At last, fans will get to see Miz and his electric fastball in a Brewers uniform as the 23-year-old right-hander is set to start tonight's series opener against the St. Louis Cardinals. The Cardinals, who have lost seven of their last 10 games, sit a half game above the Brewers in the standings, making this weekend's four-game set that much more important.

Before we look ahead to what Misiorowski might be capable of in the big leagues, let's first take a look at his current form by breaking down his last three outings in Triple-A. The team tinkered with his pitch count a little bit in recent months, perhaps realizing that Miz had nothing left to prove in the minor leagues, was destined for MLB, and therefore shouldn't waste any more pitches than he has to against minor league opponents. Here's a rundown of how Miz was pitching just before he got the call to the majors.

Nashville Sounds @ Indianapolis Indians (5/26/25): 4 IP, 5 H, 1 ER, 2 BB, 8 K

Coming off a three-inning 54-pitch outing, it was clear that Nashville Sounds' manager Rick Sweet and the rest of the Brewers' organization were committed to lowering Misiorowski's pitch count for a few starts, as the young flamethrower still has yet to surpass 100 innings thrown in a professional season. It was a similar story during Miz's May 26th start against the Indianapolis Indians, the Pittsburgh Pirates' Triple-A affiliate. Despite allowing just one earned run and striking out eight opposing hitters, Miz was pulled after four innings. However, in those four short innings, Miz put on a show.

The most exciting part of this start is how Miz went about collecting his eight strikeouts; he used all four of his pitches. Three came via Miz's overpowering fastball, which averages nearly 98 MPH, two came on his sharp 90+ MPH slider, and one came on his slower looping curveball. But perhaps most exciting are the two strikeouts that Miz collected on his new changeup, an addition to his repertoire this season. The addition has made Miz even more effective against left-handed pitching and will be an important pitch for him at the big league level.

Nashville Sounds @ Indianapolis Indians (5/31/25): 2 IP, 3 H, 5 ER, 6 BB, 2 K

Misiorowski made two consecutive starts against the same team, a common occurrence in the minor leagues where teams face off for six-game series. It's a difficult task to face the same lineup in back-to-back starts, especially when those starts come just five days apart. Opposing hitters remember their at-bats from the previous game and remember how the pitcher got them out. But Misiorowski's performance was due less to Indianapolis hitters figuring out his stuff and more to them simply waiting it out, as all of five earned runs that Miz allowed reached on a walk.

Despite the one rough outing, Miz has really reined in his walks this season. After walking 14.4% of the batters he faced a season ago, Miz has issued free passes to just 12.3% this year, according to FanGraphs — still not a low number, but the improvement shows a pitcher with a clear goal and a strategy to accomplish it. That said, if Miz does struggle in the big leagues, it won't be because of lack of velocity or not enough movement on his pitches; it will be because of command, which, other than this one instance against Indianapolis, has been much improved this season.

Nashville Sounds vs. Gwinnett Stripers (6/7/25): 5 IP, 2 H, 0 ER, 3 BB, 7 K

Miz was back to his normal self in his most recent outing, giving the Brewers front office the last push that they needed to call up their top pitching prospect. Despite throwing just 68 pitches, Miz fanned seven hitters on the Gwinnett Stripers, the Atlanta Braves Triple-A affiliate, and didn't allow a run in five innings of work. Of his seven strikeouts, five came via the curveball, with the other two coming on fastballs that were 99 and 102 MPH.

Miz throwing just 68 pitches before turning things over to his bullpen could have simply been due to the nature of the game — it was the first leg of a double-header, which are only seven innings in the minor leagues, and several relief pitchers may have been scheduled to throw as well. But 68 pitches has actually been Miz's average in his last four outings, showing what seems to be a deliberate effort to lower his pitch count.

Time will tell if the Brewers will adopt this strategy as well — having their pitchers only face a lineup two times through and stay below the 75-pitch mark has been a common tactic for Pat Murphy and company this season. However, if Miz is rolling while his pitch count climbs north of 75, it's going to be very difficult for Murphy to pull him from the mound tonight.