MLB insider offers high praise for Brewers' 2026 rotation hopeful

The Milwaukee Brewers enter the 2026 season with a notably young starting rotation. Aside from veteran Brandon Woodruff, who brings seven years of major league experience, no other starter has more than a season and a half in the big leagues. Among the group behind Woodruff, Quinn Priester has the most experience with 257 career major league innings to his name, and Kyle Harrison is not far behind him with 194.2 innings of big league experience.

Despite the lack of MLB exposure, nobody in Milwaukee is all that concerned. Rather, it's feelings of excitement that dominate the Brewers' fanbase. Jacob Misiorowski, the recently announced 2026 Opening Day starter, has Cy Young potential, Chad Patrick is looking to build off a phenomenal rookie campaign, and newcomers in Harrison, Brandon Sproat, and Shane Drohan all offer big upside alongside intriguing options like Robert Gasser, Logan Henderson, and Coleman Crow.

Among that group, MLB Insider Jim Bowden at The Athletic recently gave his praise to Sproat as an emerging arm who could be a potential difference-maker due to his raw talent and long-term upside. Here at Reviewing the Brew, we already agreed with that assessment, pegging him as a potential Rookie of the Year candidate earlier this offseason.

Brandon Sproat, cited as potential breakout arm, officially makes Brewers' Opening Day roster

The right-handed Sproat, who was acquired from the New York Mets this off-season as part of the Freddy Peralta deal, is said to have mid-rotation starter potential once fully developed, according to Bowden. He has an edge right now with a plus fastball that ranges from 95-97 MPH, but can get up to 99. He pairs that four-seam with a hard sinker that neutralizes right-handers, and three effective off-speed pitches -- a sweeper, slider, and changeup.

Bowden pointed to pitch-to-pitch velocity variation as one area where Sproat can still improve, which may help explain why he posted ERAs in the 4.00 range both at Triple-A last season and during his brief stint in the majors last September. If he can find more consistent command and maintain a steadier velocity band, there’s a strong belief those numbers will drop and his overall effectiveness will take a meaningful step forward.

Despite still having some development ahead of him, Sproat has officially made the Brewers' 2026 Opening Day roster, as recently reported by Curt Hogg of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. Henderson has been optioned to Triple-A, Woodruff's 2026 season appears to be delayed slightly, and Sproat is set to start an exhibition game in Milwaukee against the Cincinnati Reds next Tuesday. That start sets him up to open the year in the back-end of the Brewers' rotation.

With praise from Bowden, a former MLB GM turned insider, and now a spot in the Brewers' Opening Day rotation, Sproat is set up for success at the onset of the 2026 campaign. A strong performance from the young right-hander would certainly make Peralta's departure much easier to stomach.