Brewers dealt surprising injury blow ahead of series opener against the Mets

Just over a week ago, the Milwaukee Brewers elected to part with one of their many starting pitchers at the MLB Trade Deadline. The decision was an easy one at the time, and remains a prudent one to this day. Adding Nestor Cortes, the starting pitcher that the Brewers ultimately parted ways with at the deadline, to the active roster would have resulted in several difficult decisions, and the Brewers had the starting pitching depth to cover an injury or two even without Cortes in their organization.

However, the testing of that starting pitching depth has come about sooner and more severely than the Brewers would have hoped. Three days after the deadline passed, the Brewers' All-Star rookie starting pitcher, Jacob Misiorowski, went on the IL with a left tibia contusion. It was a difficult blow, but given the fact that the Brewers were planning on limiting The Miz's innings down the stretch anyways, and the injury is unlikely to keep him out for more than the minimum 15 days, it wasn't too difficult to deal with for the first-place Brew Crew.

What made that development even easier to stomach was who replaced Misiorowski in the starting rotation: Logan Henderson. Henderson, who has been stuck behind the Brewers' plethora of starting pitchers all season, was waiting for another shot at the big leagues, where he had been very successful in the few opportunities he had been given.

Then, on Friday afternoon, the Brewers surprised everyone by announcing that Henderson himself went down with a scary injury: right elbow inflammation. As such, Logan Henderson has been placed on the 15-day IL, further testing the Brewers’ starting pitching depth.

Brewers place Logan Henderson on 15-day IL with right elbow inflammation, recall Tobias Myers to replace him in big league rotation

The plan was to have Henderson make two starts in Misiorowski's stead while the latter rested up from his left shin injury. Henderson was excellent, as he has been all season when called upon, in the first start that he made for the injured Misiorowski. He tossed 4.1 innings against the Washington Nationals last Sunday and allowed just one run, despite being a last-minute replacement for The Miz.

However, Henderson didn't bounce back from that start the way he wanted to, and now lands on the IL with an injury to his pitching elbow. Replacing him in the big league rotation for what will presumably be just one start before Misiorowski is ready to return is 2024 breakout pitcher Tobias Myers.

Myers has been up and down between the Triple-A and major league roster this season, and even appeared out of the Brewers' bullpen for a brief stint last month. His numbers are solid — he holds a 4.30 ERA in 23 innings pitched, but failing to replicate his success from a season ago has left Myers in roster limbo.

Now, the 27-year-old Myers, who figures to be a part of the Brewers' rotation plans next season and beyond, will get another chance to prove himself on a big league mound. However, regardless of how well he performs, he will more than likely be replaced by Misiorowski prior to his next opportunity. Myers is scheduled to start tomorrow night's game against the Mets.