The left-handed reliever who should absolutely be a part of the Brewers 2026 rotation

Barring a trade of Freddy Peralta, the Milwaukee Brewers' rotation may be more set in stone than most fans think.

Peralta, Brandon Woodruff, and Quinn Priester will claim the top three spots in Pat Murphy's starting crew, while Jacob Misiorowski, Chad Patrick, and Logan Henderson should be considered the favorites for the back-end jobs. There's definitely room to add a veteran starter with ample postseason experience to that mix, but even then, that sextet more or less represents the best options for the Brewers in 2026.

However, what if the team wants to throw an in-house name into the competition for the No. 4 or No. 5 starter job? Considering that all of those aforementioned starters are righties, it'd be nice if Milwaukee could add a southpaw to the starting staff.

Luckily, there is a perfect fit already on the roster... assuming the Brewers are comfortable with displacing one of their most valuable relievers.

Aaron Ashby deserves another chance at starting for Brewers in 2026

When Ashby signed his original five-year extension in 2022, he did so as a starting pitcher. He made 27 appearances that year, 19 of which were starts, while firing off a 4.44 ERA and 4.06 FIP.

He then missed the entire 2023 season due to a shoulder injury, and ever since he's been almost entirely relegated to bullpen duty. Mind you, that hasn't been a bad thing, as the 27-year-old southpaw has recorded a 2.37 ERA and 2.73 FIP since the start of the 2024 season. He was particularly dominant this past year, recording 1.2 fWAR while striking out 28.1% of opposing batters.

While there's plenty of value in being a high-leverage, left-handed relief arm that Pat Murphy can rely on regularly (sometimes too much), Ashby is earning a $5.7 million salary in 2026 and a $7.7 million salary in 2027 (with two years and $22 million in club options after that). Given the ludicrous prices relievers have been going for in free agency this winter, that's still a bargain for an arm as good as Ashby, but it's not quite the deal the Brewers were hoping they got when they extended him as a starter.

Aaron Ashby Career Performance, SP vs. RP
As a starter: 110 1/3 IP, 4.81 ERA, 24.3% strikeout rate, .756 OPS allowed
As a reliever: 123 2/3 IP, 2.55 ERA, 30.6% strikeout rate, .593 OPS allowed

The difference in production is so stark that some would (rightfully) argue that there's no reason to mess with a good thing. Ashby is a dominant lefty reliever and a mediocre-at-best starter — why ask him to do anything besides what he's best at?

Well, for a team as budget-conscious as the Brewers, having a dependable back-end starter is more valuable than a high-quality reliever, especially seeing as Milwaukee has been so good at developing bullpen arms in recent years. It may be an experiment that ultimately doesn't pan out, but if Ashby can come even close to replicating his post-injury success in the rotation next year, he'd make this team an even bigger threat in the National League.