Is this Good? Bullpen

Trevor Megill

The 2025 season sees the beginning of a new era for the Milwaukee bullpen, one that is no longer anchored by the sublime, and sometimes maddening pitching of closer Devin Williams.  Also gone is left-handed mainstay Hobey Milner, who had made 220 appearances for Milwaukee over the last four seasons.  It's a mostly intact group beyond the exit of those two names, which offers a chance for an effective group.

So, is this good?

Tier 1 - Trevor Megill, Bryan Hudson

Entering spring Trevor Megill looks like he'll get the nod to close games in 2025.  When Williams' was injured last season, Megill stepped up and closed out 21 games in 24 opportunities.  He was good, pitching to a 2.72 ERA across 48 appearances and striking out 50.  As long as Megill can stay healthy, he should be able to hold down the closer spot in 2025.

I've seen some talk about stretching out Bryan Hudson for the fifth starter spot, but until we see anything to that end the best place he can help this club is in a high leverage bullpen role.  If you take him out of the bullpen mix this group gets quite a bit less effective.

Hudson pitched well in the first half, but he pitched a lot. In the first half he made 33 appearances, throwing 48.1 innings.  In the second half he made only 10 appearances, pitching 14 innings, with some disabled list time included.  If Hudson can come back at his first half form, and Milwaukee can use him a bit less in the season's first three months, expect Hudson to be a big part of the team's success.

Tier 2 - Jared Koenig, Joel Payamps

Jared Koenig was something of a revelation for the 2024 Milwaukee Brewers.  He joined the bullpen in mid-April and solidified a spot very quickly.  Koenig pitched in 55 games, 62 innings with a 2.47 ERA.  He pitched in a ton of close games as well, managing to win nine games out of the bullpen.  Koenig's walks were a bit high - 24 in those 62 innings, but he kept the ball in the ballpark (four home runs allowed).  Just another example of the Brewers finding a guy where nobody else could.

Joel Payamps

Entering his third season in the Brewers bullpen is righty Joel Payamps.  His 2024 was something of a mixed bag.  The good? He finished the season with a WHIP of 0.966, so he had less than one base runner per inning.  The bad? His ERA by month: April - 3.38, May - 4.82, June - 4.82, July, 4.15, August - 1.42, September - 0.00.  If late season Payamps shows up, this bullpen is infinitely better.  If early season Payamps is the version Milwaukee gets, this could be rough.

Tier 3 - Nick Mears, Tyler Alexander, Elvis Peguero

Trade deadline acquisition Nick Mears joined Milwaukee from the Rockies last season and had... questionable results.  He didn't beat himself, striking out 18 and walking three in 12.1 innings for the Brewers.  But he certainly got beat, giving up ten runs and a whopping five home runs in that same stretch.  He's a body, and he'll get a crack at opening the season in Milwaukee.

Tyler Alexander was a very late signing to the big league roster, signing a one-year deal back on February 12.  Think bulk reliever.  In his career he's made 143 appearances, including 52 starts and has a career ERA of 4.55.  Results as a reliever vs. starter don't differ much, in 244.2 innings as a starter he has a 4.60 ERA, in 204.1 innings as a reliever his ERA is 4.49. So, he's a pitcher that exists.

With Milwaukee's knack for getting the most out of pitchers, Alexander could be a useful part of the pen, but more realistically he's going to eat up some innings in less-than-close games. He may get a chance at high-leverage innings, however he hasn't demonstrated the ability to succeed in those roles to this point in his career.  Think Bryse Wilson, he'll help the club, however you'll be a bit nervous every time he pitches.

Elvis Peguero

You might title the story of Elvis Peguero's 2024 as "too many base-runners."  While the ERA of 2.98 in 51.1 innings sounds good at face value the 1.539 WHIP tells a different story.  If he can limit the walks and singles, Peguero could play a major role for the Brewers in 2025.  But then, if every player reached their potential then there wouldn't be any open roster spots.  He'll have a chance, but we'll see what he does with it.

Tier ? - Jacob Misiorowski, Craig Yoho, Abner Uribe, Logan Henderson, Deivi Garcia, Grant Anderson, Connor Thomas, Grant Wolfram

This category qualifies very much as, here's some guys.  I'll be brief on the depth names, if only to give an introduction to the names we might see pitching for Milwaukee in 2025.  But there are a couple names that have earned a degree of excitement by their performances in the minor leagues.

It's hard to buy into the Jacob Misiorowski as a starter talk, but as a reliever - sign me up.  One of Milwaukee's top prospects, Misiorowski struck out 127 batters in 97.1 innings between AA and AAA.  In his 17.2 innings in AAA he had a 0.849 WHIP.  Swing and miss stuff.  He also walked 60 batters in those 97.1 innings.  It's likely we'll see him in some role in Milwaukee in 2025, let's just hope he can reel in the walks before then.

Craig Yoho

Craig Yoho demonstrates the value of drafting college pitchers.  Taken in the 8th round of the 2023 draft out of the University of Indiana, Yoho shot up the minors in his first full season in the Brewers system.  He made 48 appearances, pitching 57.2 innings, starting the season in A-ball, and finishing in Triple-A Nashville.  Yoho was absurd, with a 0.94 ERA, and a 0.936 WHIP.  Oh and he also struckout 101 batters last season.  If he can translate any of that minor league success to the major he could be a major plus.

Logan Henderson might have a shot at the starting rotation as well, but call me skeptical of a starter that rarely makes it more than four innings in an appearance, so he lands here.  A 4th round pick in 2021, Henderson has battled injuries to this point in his pro career.  He pitched 81.1 innings in 2024, all the way up to AAA, and struck out 104 batters against only 15 walks.  Henderson was added to the 40-man roster to avoid losing him in the rule-5 draft this past winter.

Abner Uribe will likely get another shot this year once recovered from surgery on a lateral meniscus tear last June.  His high MPH fastball is undeniable, but he was pretty terrible last season before being sent down early, and then hurting his knee in the minors - Uribe had a 1.884 WHIP, and a 6.91 ERA in 14.1 innings in 2025.

Connor Thomas has yet to make a major league appearance, but in 90.1 minor league innings in 2024 he had a 2.89 ERA.  Deivi Garcia is a minor league signing for the crew,  who has shown occasional flashes for the Chicago White Sox, and New York Yankees, and is entering his age-26 season.  Grant Anderson has yet to establish himself as a major league player, but has made 49 appearances for the Texas Rangers over the last two seasons (with a 6.35 ERA).  Grant Wolfram hasn't appeared in the bigs yet either, and pitched 60.1 innings between AA and AAA last season - to the tune of a 3.13 ERA.

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That brings us to the big question now, is this good?  Megill showed in 2024 that he was capable of closing games when needed, but can he do that on a regular basis, and can he stay healthy enough to do it for a full season for Milwaukee?  If Payamps, Koenig and Hudson are at their best, the 7th/8th inning certainly looks a lot stronger.  Ultimately this could come down to what Misiorowski and Yoho can bring to the table, and more importantly, when they bring it to the table.

Is this good? It's not bad, but it's no sure thing either.  If that feels like a non-answer, welcome to predicting bullpen success in the spring.