Worrisome Brewers Jared Koenig injury gives another ex-Red Sox a shot at revenge

A postponement of last Friday's series opener with the Kansas City Royals has forced the Milwaukee Brewers to get creative with their starting rotation. The rainout led to a doubleheader on Saturday, which the Brewers split with the Royals, which meant that Chad Patrick, who was slated to start the series opener, saw his second start of the young 2026 season pushed back one day. As a result, despite Patrick's spot in the rotation due up this afternoon, just three days have passed since his last outing, putting the Brewers in a tricky position.

Not wanting to pitch their talented, second-year right-hander on just three days' rest, the Brewers have elected to give a spot start to offseason trade acquisition Shane Drohan. Manager Pat Murphy revealed that Drohan would start today's series finale with the Boston Red Sox in a rather comical way at the end of his postgame presser on Brewers.TV following last night's loss.

After answering media members' questions about the 3-2 loss to the Red Sox, Murphy's press conference appeared to be wrapping up, but before the cameras cut away, the Brewers' blunt manager simply said "Drohan," suggesting, with as few words as possible, that the team had settled on a starter for this afternoon's rubber match. Brewers.TV reporter Sophia Minnaert confirmed that Murphy's one-word utterance meant that Drohan was slated to start game three of the Brewers and Red Sox' three-game set.

Shane Drohan set to make MLB debut against former team after Jared Koenig's concerning injury opens roster spot

Not only is Drohan set to make his MLB debut this afternoon, but he will do so against the organization that drafted him in the 5th round of the 2020 MLB Draft. Drohan was extremely close to making his MLB debut back in 2024; he was selected by the Chicago White Sox in the offseason Rule 5 Draft. Teams are required to add Rule 5 draftees to their active roster, meaning Drohan would have been on the White Sox 2024 Opening Day roster, but a shoulder injury landed him on the injured list before the season began. When he returned from the injured list, Drohan was returned to the Red Sox' organization, which lifted the requirement of him being on the active roster. He remained in Triple-A for the rest of the season.

Last year, after beginning the season in Worcester Red Sox, Boston's Triple-A affiliate, it felt like a guarantee that Drohan would finally get his shot at the big leagues. However, forearm inflammation limited the southpaw to just 54 innings, and as a result, he never cracked the Red Sox' major league roster. Now, after a frustrating minor league career, Drohan finally gets his chance in MLB, and it just so happens that his first start will take place at Fenway Park against the team that traded him away this offseason.

The 27-year-old Drohan impressed during the spring exhibition season, flashing impressive swing-and-miss abilities by striking out 15 batters in 12.2 innings. Prior to his promotion on Monday afternoon, Drohan made one start with the Triple-A Nashville Sounds, posting a 3.1-inning outing in which he allowed two earned runs and struck out six.

While Drohan's debut is certainly something for Brewers fans to celebrate, his promotion to the major league roster was the result of very concerning injury news from Milwaukee's bullpen group. The roster spot that Drohan now occupies was opened due to left-handed reliever Jared Koenig suffering a worrisome elbow strain, which he is currently receiving a second opinion on. The original opinion suggested that Koenig forgo surgery and try for a 2-4 week rehab process, but elbow sprains can often lead to rather severe outcomes. On Monday afternoon, Murphy told MLB.com Brewers' beat reporter Adam McCalvy that the injury is a "big concern."

As Brewers fans await further news on the high-leverage lefty, they can at least enjoy watching the MLB debut of Drohan this afternoon. The organization is very high on Drohan and believes he could be an important part of the rotation picture moving forward. It's telling that the Brewers opted to promote him to the major league roster another left-handed rotation option in Robert Gasser. Drohan tossed 81 pitches in his lone start with the Sounds, so he should be able to work through the Red Sox' order at least twice this afternoon, assuming all goes well.