Milwaukee Brewers right-handed pitcher Brandon Woodruff can’t shake the injury bug.
The two-time All-Star left his Thursday afternoon start against the Diamondbacks in the second inning after a concerning drop in his fastball velocity.
Woodruff, whose heater has averaged 92.5 mph this season, per Baseball Savant, did not throw a fastball above 86.9 mph during his 21-pitch outing Thursday.
After he delivered an 83.8 mph cutter for a ball to Arizona batter Nolan Arenado in the top of the second inning, Brewers manager Pat Murphy and the team’s training staff immediately came out of the dugout to check on their starter.
Following a brief visit, Woodruff handed the ball over to Murphy and walked off the mound with trainer Brad Epstein.
“He wasn’t himself,” Murphy later said to Brewers.TV reporter Sophia Minnaert during a mid-game interview. “He felt kind of dead. He said he didn’t feel any pain, just nothing was coming out. We’ve seen a little bit of this, but never at this level, where he can’t get the ball over 85 mph.
“He’s so important to us. We’re not going to risk anything, maybe long-term by having him try to step on it.”
Entering play Thursday, Woodruff was in the midst of a solid 2026, sporting a 2-1 record with a 3.77 ERA and 23 strikeouts across 28.1 innings.
Woodruff, who missed most of the past two seasons due to injury, recorded at least five innings in each of his first five starts.
He missed all of 2024 after undergoing right shoulder surgery to repair his anterior capsule and despite returning to the mound last season, managed just 12 starts before going down with a season-ending lat strain.
If Woodruff misses an extended stretch, the Brewers – who traded ace Freddy Peralta and swingman Tobias Myers to the Mets during the offseason – will have to lean on their depth to cover his absence.
Flamethrower Jacob Misiorowski, Chad Patrick, Kyle Harrison and a healthy Woodruff have been solid to begin the season for Milwaukee, which entered play Thursday with a 15-14 record.
“He’s going through this process and hopefully [will] be okay and he’ll work himself into his form,” Murphy added. “Because even with him maybe not throwing his normal 95 he can still get outs and win. As long as he doesn’t risk injury I’ll go with him every time.”
