Josh Hader headlines pitchers primed to debut in 2017
The Milwaukee Brewers are in good shape heading into Spring Training and not for a lack of trying. After spending much of the offseason adding a variety of arms to their major league and minor league rosters, the Brewers now have a healthy list to assemble their starting rotation and bullpen.
Although the team should have a fully packed roster to begin the season, there are still a large number of major league ready pitchers waiting in Triple-A Colorado Springs and Double-A Biloxi. Some are nearly guaranteed to see MLB playing time this season, while others’ chances may be purely situational. Regardless, here is a look and who could be making their MLB debut in 2017.
**Jorge Lopez, Hiram Burgos and Wei-Chung Wang were not included in this list, as all have debuted in previous years.
Josh Hader LHP
As Milwaukee’s No. 3 prospect, Hader’s official entrance into Major League Baseball has been anticipated by Brewers fans since he came over in last season’s blockbuster trade with the Houston Astros.
After joining the Crew’s minor league ranks, Hader proved that he was more than worth his weight in a trade that also included top prospect Brett Phillips and major league right fielder Domingo Santana. He slotted right into the Biloxi Shuckers rotation and despite a 1-4 record, pitched to a 2.79 ERA and 0.983 WHIP with 50 strikeouts and 11 walks in 38 2/3 innings.
In 2016, he improved even further, posting a nearly immaculate 0.95 ERA and 1.000 WHIP with 73 strikeouts and only 19 walks in 57 innings. Unfortunately, the thin air of Colorado Springs tripped him up after his promotion and his ERA and WHIP inflated to 5.22 and 1.435 respectively. His walk rate also rose to an uncharacteristic 4.7 BB/9 but his strikeouts remained surprisingly consistent at 11.5 K/9– exactly where they’ve been over the past year and a half and not far from his career 10.3.
But as with many prospects, Hader has always struggled in his first forays at new levels, only to return massively improved. If he repeats that process in 2016, there’s little doubt that he will make the leap to the big league roster sooner than later.
There have been recent doubts as to whether Hader will remain a starter at the major league level. Despite his 94-98 mph fastball and a plus slider, he does experience a bit of wildness with his changeup, according to MLB Pipeline. Offseason speculations have amounted to the same, only to be quashed by Farm Director Tom Flanagan.
Regardless, fans should expect to see Hader in 2017 one way or another, even if he’s a late-season call-up or gets most of his work out of the bullpen. His presence on the major league roster will be a huge addition and with any luck, a testament to the team’s promising future.
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