Predicting what the Brewers' pitching staff looks like in October

The Milwaukee Brewers had a chance to clinch a postseason berth with a win (and losses from several key NL contenders) on Tuesday night. While that effort fell flat, as the Crew suffered a frustrating loss to the Texas Rangers, dropping the series in Arlington in the process, the Brewers are still just a couple of wins away from officially punching their ticket to the 2025 postseason.

With the postseason on the horizon, the Brewers must start thinking about their personnel, and specifically which group of arms they will carry in October. Selecting pitchers for a postseason roster is a delicate balance between carrying enough starting pitchers to cover each game and not leaving the bullpen too thin. Picking which group of 13 arms to include on a postseason roster generally depends on the length of the series, with the strategy differing in a three-game set as opposed to a seven-game one. Luckily, teams get to reset their rosters after each series.

The Brewers have a clear rotation of five starting pitchers who will all more than likely be a part of the postseason roster. Whether each of them is pitching in a traditional starter's role remains to be seen. Already, rumors of Jacob Misiorowski switching to a multi-inning relief role for the postseason have popped up. On the bullpen side of things, it will be injuries that determine the group that Milwaukee elects to carry in October. While most of the currently injured Brewers relievers are expected to be back before the end of the regular season, things could change over the next couple of weeks.

While uncertainty still remains, here is an early estimation of the 13 pitchers that the Brewers will carry in their first postseason series, keeping in mind that it could be either a three- or five-game series.

An early prediction of the 13 pitchers that the Brewers will carry in their first postseason series

Starting pitchers (5): Freddy Peralta, Brandon Woodruff, Quinn Priester, José Quintana, and Jacob Misiorowski

Whether they elect to use all five of them in a traditional starter's role or not, the Brewers should absolutely include all of their five starting pitchers on their postseason roster.

Peralta, Woodruff, and Priester are no-brainers, as they will likely be called upon to start the Brewers' first three playoff games. From there, it depends on the series, but in general, a team will use three or four starters in a five-game series — with the off-days included during the NLDS, a starter could theoretically pitch both game one and game four on regular four-days’ rest.

If the Brewers feel comfortable throwing Peralta on four-days rest, then both Misiorowski and Quintana get relegated to relief roles in the first series. But, the team could also opt to piggy-back The Miz and Quintana in game four, which would certainly be a tough task for an opposing offense.

Regardless of how they are used, the five starting pitchers that have carried the Brewers through the second half of the season are absolutely part of the Brewers' best 13 pitchers and therefore should be included on the postseason roster without question.

Relief pitchers (8): Trevor Megill, Abner Uribe, Jared Koenig, Nick Mears, Aaron Ashby, Grant Anderson, Rob Zastryzny, and Tobias Myers

The bullpen is where things get a little more interesting. First off, the inclusion of Quintana and Misiorowski, despite neither being guaranteed a start in the playoffs, limits the need for length options out of the bullpen. As such, names like Chad Patrick, Logan Henderson, and Carlos Rodriguez likely won't receive too much consideration for the postseason roster. Additionally, Erick Fedde, who the Brewers added to their roster just before the September 1 deadline that makes him postseason eligible, doesn't have a clear spot as a bulk reliever on the postseason roster.

DL Hall could surely factor into the Brewers postseason plans, but with an estimated return date that could approach October 1, it's questionable whether or not he will truly be ready for postseason baseball. If he is in fact healthy and ready to go in October, expect him to replace one of the final three names on the list above, with current form potentially being the main determining factor of which one it ends up being.

There's a small chance that either Craig Yoho or Joel Payamps catches fire down the stretch, assuming the former is given another chance with the big league club, but the priority will likely go to the players that have proven their consistency throughout the season.

Nothing is set in stone, and with the Brewers' recent run of injuries as evidence, things can change on a dime. However, as things currently stand, and with the assumption that all of Milwaukee's injured relievers stick to their estimated return dates, a playoff roster that includes the 13 pitchers listed above is not difficult to fathom. Then comes the difficult task of determining how to use each of the 13 arms to give the team the best chance of success. Luckily, that job is reserved for 2025 NL Manager of the Year frontrunner Pat Murphy.