Bullpen or rotation: Early predictions for where these Brewers will pitch in 2026

As the Milwaukee Brewers prepare for 2026, one of the biggest questions surrounding the roster is how they’ll construct their starting rotation. If Freddy Peralta returns, he’s a lock, as are Quinn Priester and Brandon Woodruff, who is coming back on a one-year, $22.025 million qualifying offer, which makes any possibility of a Woodruff trade impossible until at least June 15.

From there, the Brewers have several arms who have worked in both the rotation and the bullpen, including Chad Patrick, Tobias Myers, Jacob Misiorowski, Carlos Rodriguez, Robert Gasser, Aaron Ashby, and DL Hall. Prospect Logan Henderson is likely to factor into the competition as well, although he has worked strictly as a starter throughout his brief major league career.

Here we take a look at where some of these pitchers might start to begin the 2026 season.

Milwaukee Brewers' 2026 pitching staff outlook: Early calls on who starts and who relieves

Among the group mentioned, Misiorowski’s upside is simply too great to keep him out of the rotation. If he can harness his mechanics and command, his ceiling is practically limitless. That effectively leaves one final rotation spot up for grabs.

Based on how last season ended, Chad Patrick has to be considered a frontrunner for a rotation spot. Even though his velocity ticked up during an impressive postseason stretch as a reliever, he also filled in effectively as a starter early in the year before being sent back down as the roster got healthier.

While Patrick’s seize-the-opportunity story mirrors what Tobias Myers did in 2024, the Brewers wanted more from Myers in 2025, openly taking him out of the rotation and sending him down to the minors to refine his approach before bringing him back in a bullpen role. Milwaukee will likely continue developing him as a pitcher who can cover multiple innings, but it is difficult to imagine him in the starting rotation to begin 2026.

Similarly, Robert Gasser and Logan Henderson are two pitchers with legitimate upside and have proven success at the big-league level, just in small sample sizes. There’s been no indication that the Brewers plan to move either to the bullpen; Gasser worked in relief last season only because he returned late in the year following Tommy John surgery. Both are likely to begin the year as a part of the Triple-A Nashville Sounds' starting rotation, assuming health elsewhere on the pitching staff.

Meanwhile, Ashby and Hall have both found their niche in the bullpen. Ashby, who started earlier in his career and did frequently serve as an opener in this year’s playoffs, has thrived in shorter stints, and Milwaukee would be wise to stick with that approach. The same goes for Hall, who's battled injuries throughout his Brewers tenure as both a starter and reliever, but found more success as the latter.

A lot can happen between now and when the 2026 season kicks off, including injury and trade, but at least for now this is how the Brewers should utilize their versatile pitching staff in 2026.