Why Logan Henderson might remain on the Brewers roster after The Miz returns

The Brewers received some unfortunate news on their All-Star rookie this weekend, as Jacob Misiorowski was placed on the 15-day injured list with a tibia contusion.

In seven starts (33 1/3 innings) this season, the 23-year-old flamethrower has authored a 2.70 ERA, 3.11 FIP, and a comical 36.4% strikeout rate.

For all intents and purposes, he had become Freddy Peralta's co-ace in the rotation in record time, and this injury will push the Brewers to dig into their pitching depth just days after trading away Nestor Cortes in a shocking deadline deal.

Luckily, the Brewers have top prospect Logan Henderson waiting in the wings, and he's been very impressive in limited action this season. If he continues to pitch well, the Brewers could take advantage of their exceedingly rare position of having six high-caliber starters in the final weeks of the season.

Brewers' rough schedule could force a six-man rotation in Milwaukee

Henderson has been shuttled up and down between the big leagues and Triple-A this year while filling in at various points for injured members of the rotation. Another Top 100 prospect per MLB Pipeline, Henderson isn't quite as electric or renowned as his rookie rotation-mate, but he deserves a lot of praise for his performance in less-than-ideal circumstances.

In five starts (25 1/3 innings) with the Brewers this season, Henderson, 23, has pitched to the tune of a 1.78 ERA and 2.99 FIP. He's also striking out hitters at an obscene rate (33.3%), and his walk rate (8.1%) is an improvement over the considerably wilder Misiorowski.

As far as backup plans go, he's one heck of an option for Milwaukee to have.

For what it's worth, there is another bright side to Misiorowski's injury. The rookie sensation has already pitched 96 innings between the majors and minors this year, which is just one shy of his career high, 97, which he set last season.

The chances that Misiorowski was staring down an impending innings limit were high, so perhaps this chance to rest could do him some good, especially since the injury doesn't affect his arm.

That notion of keeping him fresh could extend beyond just this 15-day period, however. Henderson has the same innings concerns—he's at 103 already this season after setting his career high of 81 1/3 in 2024—and the Brewers have a brutal schedule coming up at the end of August.

Starting on August 15 against the Reds, the Brewers will play 19 games in 18 days, including a doubleheader against the Cubs on August 18 as part of perhaps the most important five-game stretch of the season.

Assuming Misiorowski's stay on the IL doesn't extend far beyond the minimum, he could return for that five-game Cubs series, which could allow the Brewers to deploy a six-man rotation over the season's final few weeks, keeping everyone (he and Henderson included) a little fresher for the playoffs.

Of course, that plan assumes plenty of things go right. If they do, though, the Brewers could pitch their way to another NL Central title with a larger-than-usual supporting cast.