Injured Brewers reliever's path back to big leagues complicated by trade deadline additions

Back in early June, the Milwaukee Brewers traded cash to the Athletics for right-handed reliever Joel Kuhnel after he was surprisingly designated for assignment. Upon his arrival in the Brewers' organization, Kuhnel immediately turned around and faced his former teammates in what was an action-packed series in Las Vegas.

Amidst the excitement in Sin City was Kuhnel showing a large uptick in velocity as a member of the Brewers. With the Athletics, his fastball velocity sat at 94 MPH, but in his Milwaukee debut, he averaged 99 MPH and touched 100 MPH.

Of course, that velocity did not carry over into all of his next nine appearances with Milwaukee, during which he posted a 6.54 ERA over 9.2 innings. Still, he continued to provide value when the Brewers needed it most. He recorded saves in back-to-back appearances in Cincinnati as Milwaukee swept the Reds, despite several of their high-leverage arms being unavailable. In one of those appearances, he escaped a bases-loaded jam by inducing a game-ending double play, producing one of the more exciting finishes of the season.

In early July, the 31-year-old Kuhnel was placed on the injured list with shoulder impingement. He now is 12 days into an injury rehab assignment, having appeared in five games for the Triple-A Nashville Sounds so far. Pitchers are allotted 30 days on injury rehab assignment, but once his time is up, the Brewers' additions from the trade deadline may leave him as the odd man out.

Brewers no longer have a clear spot in the bullpen for John Kuhnel, who is currently on a rehab assignment

Earlier this month, ahead of the midseason trade deadline, the Brewers acquired three new pitchers: Dustin May, Antonio Senzatela, and JoJo Romero. May has been excellent in his first two starts with the team, giving up just three earned runs over 13.0 innings pitched. Senzatela, though his last three outings have been shaky, has been used in high-leverage spots by Pat Murphy, and is expected to play an important role in the Brewers' bullpen down the stretch.

Romero, meanwhile, is currently on the injured list, still working his way back from a midseason emergency appendectomy, but by all accounts is expected back later this month. Depending upon Romero's exact time frame, it's possible that Kuhnel's injury rehab time runs out around the time Romero is ready to be activated.

Barring any additional injuries, this likely makes Kuhnel the odd man out. At the moment, he would project as a back-end bullpen option, a role currently occupied by Bryse Wilson, and briefly Lyon Richardson too. Both pitchers have been designated for assignment by Milwaukee this month, with Wilson going unclaimed before re-signing with the Brewers following a 34-pitch outing.

That said, Romero is likely to take Wilson’s spot once he is activated, which would likely lead to Kuhnel being activated and immediately designated for assignment, unless his return aligns perfectly with when rosters expand by two spots on September 1. His future with the Brewers appears uncertain, but Milwaukee will likely use the entirety of his injury-rehab window before making that decision official. As we’ve seen throughout the season, circumstances can change quickly.

Add us as a preferred source on Google

Follow