Brewers southpaw set to make 2026 debut after dominant rehab outing

The Milwaukee Brewers' bullpen has remained elite this season despite battling a long list of injuries to the pitching staff; the unit ranks seventh in the league in ERA (3.28) and third in fWAR generated (2.8). Now, they're returning a stalwart lefty to the fold, as Rob Zastryzny will be activated from the injured list on the final day of May.

To make room on the 40-man roster, the team moved Angel Zerpa to the 60-day IL; to make room on the active roster, they optioned Carlos F. Rodriguez to Triple-A.

Though Zastryzny has had to fight through a few setbacks -- he was originally slated to make his season debut in late-April -- he's clearly ready for his return. He's been near-flawless during his rehab assignment, tossing 6 1/3 scoreless frames, and his latest outing against the Gwinnett Stripers (Atlanta's Triple-A affiliate) was a ruthlessly efficient 1-2-3 inning.

Rob Zastryzny adds another left-handed relief weapon to Brewers' embarrassment of riches

The Zerpa decision is a mere formality -- he underwent Tommy John surgery earlier this month and is expected to be out until mid-2027. He was always going to end up on the 60-day IL once the team needed a 40-man spot.

Rodriguez, meanwhile, continues his back-and-forth shuttling between Milwaukee and Nashville. It's more than likely that the organization will keep stretching him out as a starter in case injuries arise later in the season.

The real story is here is Zastryzny. With Jared Koenig (sprained elbow) and Zerpa both out, the 34-year-old's return rebalances Pat Murphy's bullpen, giving the Brewers skipper four righties and four southpaws to work with. He's also more a true one-inning reliever than any of Aaron Ashby, DL Hall or Shane Drohan, making him the ostensible LOOGY of the group.

Thanks to a breakout season from Hall and Ashby's never-ending ascent into the stratosphere, the Crew haven't been wanting for left-handed relief help. Focusing only on that group of pitchers, the team ranks third in ERA (2.43), third in FIP (3.02), and second in fWAR (1.4). Still, adding a veteran who has held left-handed batters to a .191 batting average throughout his career certainly can't hurt an already-dominant unit.

Expect to see Zastryzny stick around at least until Koenig returns, which may not be a for a little while, seeing as he only just started his rehab assignment and is still building back the velocity lost from his elbow issue. For as long as that remains the case, Zastryzny should get a fair share of work out of the Brewers' bullpen when a tough assembly line of lefties is due up.

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