Pat Murphy reveals how back-end of bullpen will be used when Trevor Megill is unavailable

A right flexor strain landed Milwaukee Brewers' All-Star closer Trevor Megill on the injured list in late August of 2025, which opened the door for 25-year-old Abner Uribe to grab the reins as the team's ninth-inning man. When Megill returned just before the 2025 postseason, concerns over whether or not he was at full strength led the Brewers to roll with the flame-throwing Uribe as their closer in the playoffs.

Uribe's brief, and highly successful stint as the Brewers' closer during the final month of the 2025 regular season and into the postseason led to questions about who would assume the closing duties in 2026, he or Megill. Though Megill was coming off an All-Star campaign, enthusiasm surrounding Uribe's late-season performance understandably led many to wonder whether his time as the go-to guy at the back-end of Pat Murphy's bullpen had arrived.

However, as evidenced by Murphy's usage of his high-leverage arms through the first five games of the season, it's clear that Megill will still see a majority of the save opportunities for the Brewers. Megill was used on back-to-back days on March 29 and March 30, the former being a save opportunity which he converted, and the latter a ninth-inning appearance in a tie ballgame.

Megill reprising his role as the Brewers' ninth-inning man makes sense. Not only has the towering right-hander converted 51 of his 60 save opportunities over the last two seasons, but he was also named to the 2025 NL All-Star team. Taking his closing role away from him after the best season of his career thus far would make little sense.

As a result, Brewers fans would be justified in believing that Uribe is Murphy's go-to guy in the ninth inning when Megill is unavailable. However, last night's game against the Tampa Bay Rays, and Murphy's postgame comments following the Brewers win, reveal that it may not be that simple.

With Megill unavailable, Brewers play matchup with high-leverage relievers in close game against Rays

The Brewers led by three runs when Murphy called upon Uribe in the eighth inning of last night's game. The move suggested that the Brewers' skipper was comfortable going to someone other than Uribe or Megill in a save situation to close out the victory. Uribe delivered a scoreless frame, walking one batter and giving up one hit in the process while left-hander Ángel Zerpa warmed in the Brewers' bullpen.

In the bottom of the eighth, the red-hot Jake Bauers added another run to the Brewers' three-run lead, with his second homer of the young season, closing the door on a potential save opportunity for Zerpa. However, with Zerpa warming for what was the second time during the game and ready to go, Murphy went with the southpaw anyways.

Zerpa, who was a key part of Team Venezuela's 2026 World Baseball Classic championship run, delivered a scoreless ninth inning, improving the Brewers' season record to 4-1. The left-hander who the Brewers acquired from the Kansas City Royals for Isaac Collins and Nick Mears this offseason, has quickly ascended Murphy's trust tree.

After the game, I asked Murph about the decision to go with Uribe in the eighth and Zerpa in the ninth, and after acknowledging that he wanted Abner facing the top of the order, he added, "There's righties there too...the older kid that leads off for them [Yandy Díaz], he knows how to play baseball. We wanted the righty [matchup] there."

I followed up by asking Murph if the strategy of playing matchup in the final innings is reserved for days when Megill is unavailable, and the Brewers' skipper said, "Not necessarily. Just depends on the situation...Because Megill's done it for us 50 times in the last two years, you like the feeling when he's out there. That's not to say we won't sometimes go to other guys for the last outs."

The Brewers have found success in recent years by not conforming to the ways that the rest of the league operates, and that certainly extends to their bullpen usage. Megill is certainly the closer for this team, as evidenced by the first week of the season, but that doesn't mean Murphy won't play matchup if the right situation presents itself. And especially on days when Megill isn't available, expect Murphy's late-inning pitching decisions to be determined by more than just boxing players into the traditional roles that often dictate bullpen usage.