How one deadline trade could make or break Brewers’ September push for the top seed

It's no secret that the Brewers have one of baseball's best bullpens.

Across the entire 2025 campaign, that unit ranks seventh in the league in fWAR (4.5) and FIP (3.78), 10th in ERA (3.83), ninth in strikeout rate (23.3%), and tied for third in saves (38). And that's after they traded multi-time All-Star closer Devin Williams.

However, it's also true that the Brewers rely heavily on their bullpen, and there's been no shortage of worries about the tax on the key arms in the group. Milwaukee ranks third league-wide in innings pitched by its relievers (523.2).

Luckily, amidst a quiet trade deadline, the Brewers did bring in a reliever with limited mileage on his arm in Shelby Miller. And if his most recent performance is anything to go on, then the team may be able to avoid burning out its late-inning arms while fighting for the top seed in the National League.

Shelby Miller's presence adds much-needed freshness to taxed Brewers bullpen

Narrow down the above stats to just August, and Milwaukee's bullpen appears to be getting even better as the season goes on. This month, they rank fourth in fWAR (1.2), third in FIP (3.50), 10th in ERA (3.45), ninth in strikeout rate (24.4%), and tied for sixth in saves (eight).

Of course, Miller isn't the only reason for that kind of performance, but he's certainly helped matters.

Since joining the Brewers, the 34-year-old right-hander has appeared in nine games, authoring a 4.15 ERA and 4.28 FIP in 8 2/3 innings. He's also striking out a whopping 36.8% of the batters he's faced, which ranks second only to the scorching hot Abner Uribe in August.

His most recent outing on Aug. 26 against his former team, the Arizona Diamondbacks, was an excellent reminder of what Miller is capable of when he's on his game. Coming into a tight situation in the eighth, Miller secured the win for Milwaukee by striking out two over 1.1 scoreless frames.

His presence is especially important because of the workload Milwaukee's best arms have handled this year. The bullpen ranks third in innings pitched in August (104.1), which breaks down as such:

Aaron Ashby: 16 2/3 IP (47.1 across the whole season)
Abner Uribe: 12.0 IP (63.1)
Nick Mears: 10 1/3 IP (51.0)
Jared Koenig: 10.0 IP (54.0)
Grant Anderson: 9 1/3 IP (62.2)
Trevor Megill: 9.0 IP (46.0)
Shelby Miller: 8 2/3 IP (45.0)
DL Hall: 8 2/3 IP (28.2)
Tobias Myers: 7 2/3 (11.2)

You should note that Miller's total is relatively low, and that's because of a forearm strain that landed him on the injured list in June. The Brewers acquired him at the deadline while he was still hurt, though now that he's healthy, that time to rest could prove key in keeping the rest of the bullpen fresh in September.

Shelby Miller won't make or break the Brewers' postseason fate this year, but he will prove instrumental in their preparation for it. As far as under-the-radar deadline additions go, he seems to be a darn good one.