Milwaukee Brewers’ pitcher Brandon Woodruff during a rehabilitation start, following shoulder surgery in November 2023, with the Wisconsin Timber Rattlers on Friday, April 18, 2025, at Neuroscience Group Field at Fox Cities Stadium in Grand Chute, Wis. Wm. Glasheen/USA TODAY NETWORK-Wisconsin / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

Milwaukee Brewers' Ace Stamps Case For Big-League Return in Dominant MiLB Rehab Game

Originally posted on Minor League Baseball on SI
By Brady Farkas | Last updated May 28, 2025 3:28 PM ET

Milwaukee Brewers' longtime ace Brandon Woodruff stamped his case for a big-league return on Wednesday afternoon in a start for the High-A Wisconsin Timber Rattlers.

Woodruff, who has been out since the end of the 2023 season with surgery on his right shoulder capsule, went seven innings. In that outing, he allowed five hits and one unearned run. He walked none and struck out six. It was the longest he's gone in a rehab outing this year. The 32-year-old is 2-1 with a 2.43 ERA over seven rehab starts. He's struck out 27 over 29.2 innings.

Brandon Woodruff records his deepest rehab start of the season for the High-A @TimberRattlers:

7 IP | 5 H | 1 R | 0 ER | 0 BB | 6 K

The @Brewers righty threw 52 of his 74 pitches for strikes. pic.twitter.com/Q6MpnyHuOX
— Minor League Baseball (@MiLB) May 28, 2025

At the big-league level, Woodruff is 46-26 lifetime with a 3.10 ERA. He's a two-time All-Star who finished fifth in the National League Cy Young voting in 2021. For years, he paired with Corbin Burnes to make up one of the most dynamic top of the rotations in baseball. Burnes was dealt to the Baltimore Orioles last offseason and signed with the Arizona Diamondbacks this offseason.

The Brewers have been besieged by pitching injuries over the last two seasons. This year, the team has been without Woodruff, Aaron Ashby, Aaron Civale, DL Hall, Nestor Cortes, Robert Gasser and Tobias Myers for portions of the season. Ashby, Civale and Hall are now back.

Milwaukee entered play on Wednesday at 28-28 and in fourth place in the National League Central. They are taking on the Boston Red Sox in an afternoon series finale at American Family Field. They'll be off on Thursday before taking on the Philadelphia Phillies on Friday.

This article first appeared on Minor League Baseball on SI and was syndicated with permission.

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