There’s no reason why this top Brewers prospect shouldn’t be on the roster right now

As the regular season barrels toward its finish, the Milwaukee Brewers continue to tinker with their roster in preparation for October. It’s been a season marked by resilience; injuries have tested the depth chart, yet Milwaukee has remained a force in the NL Central. Big names like Rhys Hoskins have returned at just the right time, while dependable fill-ins such as Chad Patrick helped stabilize the rotation when the club needed innings.

But through all of the shuffling, one name remains glaringly absent from the call-up list: Robert Gasser.

The 25-year-old left-hander has been carefully worked back into action after undergoing Tommy John surgery in June of 2024. His recovery timeline followed the standard 12-month arc, and by July of this season, he was on a rehab assignment. By August, he was off the injured list and pitching for Triple-A Nashville. The Brewers have been deliberate, targeting him for a multi-inning relief role down the stretch. And yet, with the club still searching for ways to maximize its pitching staff heading into October, Gasser remains on the outside looking in.

Robert Gasser is healthy, dominant, and ready to help the Brewers now

That’s puzzling given what he’s already shown at the big-league level. In 2024, Gasser made five starts for Milwaukee, going 2-0 with a 2.57 ERA across 28 innings. He wasn’t a strikeout machine then — his 5.1 K/9 raised eyebrows, but he was effective, limiting hard contact and proving he could handle major league lineups. Efficiency was his calling card, and efficiency is exactly what playoff rotations crave.

Fast-forward to 2025, and Gasser looks even sharper. In 12 appearances across three levels, 10 of them starts, he’s put together a 2.81 ERA with 34 strikeouts across 32 innings. That’s a K/9 north of 10, nearly doubling his big-league strikeout rate from a year ago. The progression is obvious: the stuff is back, the command is intact, and the swing-and-miss is catching up to the rest of his game.

None of this is to disparage veterans like Erick Fedde, whose experience and savvy are valuable in a postseason chase. But it’s hard to ignore that Gasser represents more than just depth; he represents the future. Barring his injury setback, he was in the thick of the rotation conversation. Now, after proving himself healthy and dominant in the minors, he’s done everything possible to earn another look.

The Brewers don’t just need to prepare for October; they also need to position themselves for sustainable success, as they always preach. And few arms in the organization fit both timelines as well as Gasser. At some point, the patience has to give way to opportunity.

So here’s the question Milwaukee’s front office should be asking itself: what more does Robert Gasser have to prove? Because the way things look right now, the answer is simple: nothing.