Brewers’ NL Central rival loses key piece of starting rotation for half of 2026 season

Because the Detroit Tigers elected to hold onto Tarik Skubal, Freddy Peralta ended up being the best pitcher to change teams this offseason. But, while a lot of the rumor mill chatter focused on the Milwaukee Brewers' ace, there was another NL Central stud supposedly available at one point this offseason: Hunter Greene.

The Cincinnati Reds made the (wise) decision to hold onto their 26-year-old superstar, but they were hit with some devastating news in spring training: Greene will require surgery on his elbow, knocking him out for at least the first half of the 2026 season.

In one sense, the Reds dodged a bullet, seeing as there was fear that Greene would require a more serious procedure and miss the entire campaign. However, their evasive maneuvers led them right into a stab wound, as their sterling rotation just lost its best member for a few months.

So, how does this injury impact the NL Central race in 2026?

Hunter Greene injury neutralizes a growing threat to the Brewers' reign in the NL Central

All offseason, three teams in the division have made a serious push to dethrone the Brewers atop the NL Central: the Reds, Cubs, and Pirates (the Cardinals, meanwhile, committed entirely to a rebuild).

The Pirates overhauled their offense, attaching Brandon Lowe, Marcell Ozuna, and Ryan O'Hearn to a roster that already features Paul Skenes and Bubba Chandler. The Cubs went star-hunting, replacing Kyle Tucker with Alex Bregman and Edward Cabrera.

As for the Reds, they focused on rebuilding their bullpen while also making a late-offseason push for a reunion with Eugenio Suarez. The one thing they didn't need to worry about was their rotation, which was loaded with emerging young stars.

The Greene injury changes that, though perhaps not to as big an extent as fans might expect. Andrew Abbott, Nick Lodolo, and Brady Singer are still the most rock-solid top three in the division, and a Spring Training competition that revolved around Rhett Lowder and Chase Burns can now announce both as winners.

Still, no team gets better when they lose their best pitcher, something the Brewers can attest to now that Peralta is in New York. If anything, this Greene injury buys Milwaukee a little bit of time, as two of the best three pitchers in the division from last year (Skenes being the other) won't factor into any first-half results in the NL Central.

This revelation probably impacts the middle class of the division more than it does the Crew; the Pirates and Cubs probably have a leg up on the Reds now, with Greene's eventual return in July potentially shifting the balance of power among those three teams. Even if he returns and ignites a furious second-half push from Cincinnati, the Brewers are still the class of the division until proven otherwise.