Brewers' rookie starting pitcher could be surprise addition to Milwaukee's NLCS roster

The Milwaukee Brewers begin their best-of-seven series against the Los Angeles Dodgers tonight, with the winner heading to the 2025 World Series. One of the major question marks facing Pat Murphy and the Brewers as they set out to topple the defending champions is how the pitching staff, and more specifically the starting rotation, will play out over the course of the NLCS.

Murphy gave Brewers fans some answers to their questions during his pre-series press conference yesterday evening, saying that the Brewers will likely use an opener in Game 1, followed by either Quinn Priester or José Quintana, as reported by Curt Hogg of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, among others. The Brewers' manager also revealed that the team's ace, Freddy Peralta, will start Game 2 of the NLCS, a home game for the Brew Crew taking place on Tuesday night.

Each of those decisions was relatively predictable -- Murphy alluded to Peralta starting Game 2 of the NLCS after his Game 4 start in the NLDS didn't go as the Brewers hoped it would, and with Priester and Quintana each throwing less than 50 pitches during the NLDS, it was expected they would factor into the mix early on in the NLCS.

However, another piece of information that Murphy revealed in his press conference likely comes as much more of a surprise to Brewers fans. As also reported by Hogg, Murphy mentioned that rookie Logan Henderson has rejoined the team in Milwaukee and is eligible to be included on the NLCS roster.

Logan Henderson could be a starting option for the Brewers in the NLCS

The Brewers could certainly use another starting pitcher. They barely made it through a five-game series, relying on bullpen games in two of the five contests, despite having three off-days throughout the NLDS. Now, they may have to piece together seven games with just two days off, making for a much more difficult pitching equation.

Having a starting option like Henderson, who could start a game or theoretically cover multiple innings out of the bullpen, just as his fellow rookies Jacob Misiorowski and Chad Patrick have done during the postseason, makes a lot of sense.

Despite having just five career major league starts under his belt, the success that Henderson enjoyed during his brief time in the majors during the regular season should have Brewers fans excited about what he could bring to the table in the NLCS. Henderson was 3-0 with a 1.78 ERA and 33 strikeouts in 25.1 innings pitched across those five starts, clearly demonstrating his readiness for big-league hitters.

The main concern with including Henderson on the NLCS roster, as Hogg notes in his post included above, is that the rookie right-hander hasn't pitched in a major league game, or any game for that matter, since August 3. Expecting him to be ready for game action after missing more than two months with inflammation in his elbow, a scary injury, is a steep ask.

The Brewers might instead opt for someone like Tobias Myers, who can certainly start a game if needed, and pitched well out of the Brewers' bullpen in the final two months of the regular season. On top of that, Myers has postseason experience, as he started the Brewers' elimination game against the New York Mets in the 2024 Wild Card Series and spun a five-inning gem.

DL Hall and Erick Fedde also remain possible length options for the Brewers to carry on their NLCS roster, and for a team that needs versatility on their postseason roster, all options must be considered.

The Brewers certainly have some important decisions to make before their NLCS roster is released this morning, at which point all of the questions posed here will promptly be answered.