Looking back on Jacob Misiorowski's incredible first year in Major League Baseball

It's nearly impossible to believe that today is the one-year anniversary of Jacob Misiorowski's MLB debut. The Milwaukee Brewers' flame-throwing right-hander has quickly established himself not only as the team's new ace in the wake of their offseason trade of Freddy Peralta, but also as one of the most dominant pitchers in the entire sport.

Just one year into what Brewers fans hope is a long and successful career, Miz is already breaking records left and right. From posting more Wins Above Replacement (WAR) in the month of May than 20 entire MLB rotations to constantly setting new benchmarks with his otherworldly velocity, Misiorowski is squarely in the territory of "must-watch TV" every time he takes the bump.

However, limiting Miz's first year in Major League Baseball to simply his entries in the record books doesn't do justice to what the young ace has accomplished during his brief big-league tenure. Misiorowski's first year in MLB is a story of resilience, impressive humility in the face of incredible accomplishment, and, eventually, unparalleled success. Let's take a look back on this story by highlighting the most important chapters of Miz's young career.

Highlights from Jacob Misiorowski's record-breaking first year in Major League Baseball

A spotless debut

Prior to Misiorowski's MLB debut one year ago today, calls for his promotion from the Milwaukee faithful had reached a deafening level. Word had spread that a future ace with a unicorn fastball was currently residing in the Brewers' farm system, and fans, understandably, wanted to see him at the major league level. When those pleas were finally fulfilled, Brewers fans were validated in wondering why the team had waited so long to promote Misiorowski.

In his debut, Miz tossed five no-hit innings against the Brewers' arch-rivals, the St. Louis Cardinals. Milwaukee won the game by a score of 6-0, earning Misiorowski his first major league victory. However, while Misiorowski looked absolutely untouchable, he did issue four walks in the outing, leading to immediate concerns about how his command issues in the minor leagues would translate to the big-league level. Regardless, it was an incredible debut for the then 23-year-old right-hander, and one that will live in Brewers' history as one of the most impressive ever by a starting pitcher.

Misiorowski named to All-Star Game after just five appearances

His debut against the Cardinals kicked off a string of five starts in which Misiorowski captivated the baseball world. In his second start, which came against the Minnesota Twins, Miz didn't allow a hit until the seventh inning, meaning he began his MLB career with 11 consecutive no-hit innings. Misiorowski, unsurprisingly, earned a victory against the Twins, before matching up with Pittsburgh Pirates' ace and 2025 NL Cy Young Award winner Paul Skenes in his third start. Miz out-dueled Skenes, allowing just two hits in five scoreless innings, while striking out eight batters in the process.

The first blip on Miz's resume came against the New York Mets in his fourth career MLB start -- he surrendered five earned runs and didn't make it out of the fourth inning. However, the Brewers' right-hander couldn't have responded in a more impressive way. Facing the Los Angeles Dodgers in his fifth career MLB appearance, Miz out-pitched the legendary Clayton Kershaw. He collected an unbelievable 12 strikeouts against the formidable Dodgers lineup, and earned his fourth major league victory in just five starts.

Just three days after his start against the Dodgers, Miz was named to the NL All-Star team despite having just five games of MLB experience to his name. It's the least amount of games a player has ever played prior to their first All-Star Game appearance, which led to some controversy around the league. However, Miz blocked out the noise and pitched a scoreless eighth inning in a tight match between the National League and American League, while lighting up the radar gun. With the All-Star Game appearance for validation, Misiorowski's career couldn't have started much better.

Late-season struggles lead to questions about Miz making postseason roster

For as publicized as Misiorowski's first five MLB starts were, the next 10 appearances of his career are seldom talked about. To be fair, those ten starts were rather forgettable for the young flamethrower. From the All-Star break to the end of the regular season, Miz carried a 5.36 ERA and allowed opposing hitters to post a .755 OPS against him. However, what was most concerning was the 11.4% walk rate that Miz maintained through the stretch, leading to questions about whether his command issues might force him into a relief role.

By the end of the regular season, Misiorowski lost his spot in the Brewers' rotation, and conversations sprung up about whether or not he should be included on the postseason roster. Clearly, at his best he was a dominant big-league arm, but was Milwaukee willing to gamble on his control struggles in the postseason? For as crazy as those questions may seem now, given everything that has occurred since, there was a good chance of Miz missing out on the Brewers' playoff roster last October.

Resilience leads Misiorowski to dominant postseason performance

As he was forced to do so many times during his rookie season last year, Miz blocked out the noise after the Brewers decided to include him on their 2025 postseason roster. Fans were unsure what role they would see the flame-throwing rookie in during the playoffs, but their answer quickly came in Game 2 of the NLDS. With the Brewers tied 3-3 in the third inning against the Chicago Cubs, Miz entered from the bullpen. Brewers fans, the Cubs, and pretty much the entire baseball world were expecting to see Quinn Priester serve as the bulk pitcher in Game 2, but Pat Murphy went with his wild card instead and Miz delivered. The rookie right-hander tossed three scoreless innings with four strikeouts, while the offense built a four-run lead. Miz earned the victory and the Brewers took a 2-0 lead in the series.

However, after dropping Games 3 and 4 at Wrigley Field, during which Miz didn't pitch, the Brewers and Cubs returned to Milwaukee for a winner-takes-all Game 5. Misiorowski was once again called upon to be the Brewers' bulk pitcher in the game, relieving Trevor Megill, Milwaukee's opener, in the second inning. Despite allowing a solo homer to the first batter he faced, Seiya Suzuki, Miz covered four huge innings for the Crew, was the winning pitcher once again, and Milwaukee took the series from their division rivals.

Despite the Brewers' demoralizing performance in the NLCS against the Dodgers, Miz was once again dominant. He posted nine strikeouts in five innings in Game 3 of the NLCS, which was a Brewers record for the most strikeouts in a single postseason game by a rookie. In his incredible postseason performance, Miz's resilience shone through, and as a result, he silenced those who doubted his ability to be a major league starting pitcher.

Miz earns the nod on Opening Day in 2026

Following the Brewers' run to the NLCS in 2025, the team's starting rotation saw a pretty significant offseason shake-up. Peralta was traded to the Mets in a deal that landed Milwaukee starting pitcher Brandon Sproat, José Quintana signed a deal with the Colorado Rockies, and Kyle Harrison was brought in from the Boston Red Sox to fill out the Brewers' rotation. Paired with Brandon Woodruff's slow build-up in Spring Training and Quinn Priester's lingering nerve issue, the door quickly opened up for Misiorowski to become the Brewers' 2026 Opening Day starter.

Though Murphy waited a while to officially make the announcement, Miz was eventually given the role, and just like he did under the bright lights of the postseason, the flame-thrower delivered. Not only did Misiorowski and the Brewers defeat the Chicago White Sox in a dominant fashion by a score of 14-2, but Miz set a new franchise record for the most strikeouts by a pitcher on Opening Day with 11 punchouts. The outing kick-started what has been an incredible start to the 2026 season for the 24-year-old ace.

A record-breaking month of May cements Misiorowski among league's best arms

Misiorowski entered the month of May in a fine spot -- the Brewers' ace was sporting a 3.31 ERA with a 1.10 WHIP after March and April. However, he reached new heights in May. In six starts, Miz posted a 0.23 ERA (one earned run in 38.1 innings pitched), with a ridiculous 57 strikeouts and a 0.52 WHIP. At one point, Miz had gone 29.1 innings without allowing a single run, all while leading the league in strikeouts by a fair margin. Regardless of who ended up winning NL Pitcher of the Month (Miz did not), there's no denying Misiorowski was the most dominant pitcher in the month of May.

After one start in June, which came a mile above sea level at Coors Field, Misiorowski now holds a season-long 1.50 ERA (best in MLB), 116 strikeouts (best in MLB), a 0.81 WHIP (best in MLB), and a .151 opponent batting average (yep, that's best in MLB too). Given those numbers, it would be hard to argue against the statement "Jacob Misiorowski has been the best pitcher in MLB in 2026."

The potential was always there for Misiorowski, who throws harder than any starting pitcher in the history of baseball, but it's surprising just how quickly it's all come together for the young Brewers' ace. In less than a year, Miz has dealt with the pressure of one of the most anticipated debuts in franchise history, a controversial All-Star Game nod, late-season struggles and roster uncertainty, the immense pressure of facing the rival Cubs in the postseason, an Opening Day start before his 24th birthday, and now the responsibility of carrying the Brewers' rotation. What an incredible year it's been for Jacob Misiorowski.

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