Milwaukee Brewers manager Craig Counsell Orlando Ramirez-USA TODAY Sports

Brewers manager Craig Counsell identifies 2023 team's biggest strength

Originally posted on WI Sports Heroics | By Robin Adams | Last updated 2/24/23

The Milwaukee Brewers are hoping that 2023 will be much better than 2022. Despite their sixth season with a better than .500 finish in the past seven years, the Brewers could not keep their consecutive streak of making the post season alive (they made the Playoffs in 2020 with a 29-31 record). While many MLB analysts predict that the St. Louis Cardinals will repeat as champions of the National League Central, the more reliable PECOTA projections tell a different story. According to them, the Brewers will narrowly defeat the Cardinals for the division crown with a projected 87.6 wins (the Cardinals are projected to win 87.5).

Of course, there are 162 games to be played and anything can happen. In order for the Brewers to win the division and make their long-awaited World Series run, they need a great deal to improve in 2023. However, one facet of the team remains their strength, at least according to Craig Counsell: starting pitching.

Craig Counsell Identifies Starting Pitching as the Strength of the 2023 Milwaukee Brewers

In a recent article published by Adam McCalvy, the Brewers’ all-time winningest manager identified starting pitching as the team’s strength heading into the 2023 season:

“That’s the strength of our team. We don’t really run away from it. Our team is set up to thrive on starting pitching. Their health is really important — they’ll perform if they’re healthy. We’re not really worried about it, they’ll get it going for sure.”

Of course, the Brewers’ rotation is anchored by All-Stars Corbin Burnes, Brandon Woodruff, and Freddy Peralta. However, the rest of their projected starters and spot starter are also expected to perform well in 2023.

2023 Brewers Pitching Staff Projections

The following projections were garnered from baseballreference.com:

Corbin Burnes: 11-7, 2.95 ERA, 1.02 WHIP, 214 strikeouts
Brandon Woodruff: 10-7, 3.05 ERA, 1.08 WHIP, 177 strikeouts
Freddy Peralta: 7-5, 3.33 ERA, 1.07 WHIP, 108 strikeouts
Eric Lauer: 9-7, 3.68 ERA, 1.21 WHIP, 146 strikeouts
Adrian Houser: 7-8. 3.99 ERA, 1.34 ERA, 96 strikeouts
Aaron Ashby: 4-7, 4.11 ERA, 1.29, 114 strikeouts
Wade Miley: 6-5, 3.68 ERA, 1.32 WHIP, 76 strikeouts

The total number of wins these projected starters are expected to have equals 52. This is one game more than the team’s regular six-man rotation had in 2022. While this small improvement could make a difference, one would hope that the top four pitchers in their rotation have better win-numbers than what baseball-reference projects. Of course, it doesn’t really matter who records the wins as long as the team gets them.

This article first appeared on WI Sports Heroics and was syndicated with permission.

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