Brandon Woodruff exits vs D-backs with trainer

Brewers manager Pat Murphy described Woodruff’s initial MRI results as inconclusive after he landed back on the shelf with shoulder inflammation over the weekend. It’s an ominous development that leaves him without a definitive diagnosis and clear next steps. It certainly sounds like Woodruff is facing an extended absence and there’s a chance his season is over.

As expected, Woodruff lands on the injured list after re-injuring his right labrum during Saturday’s start against the Diamondbacks. While the Brewers haven’t given a timeline for his return, if it’s similar to the last time he dealt with this same issue, he wouldn’t return until mid-August. Drew Rom was recalled from Triple-A Nashville in a corresponding move on Sunday to add a fresh arm to the Brewers’ bullpen.

It’s the same injury that cost Woodruff six weeks earlier in the season. The 33-year-old struggled to three runs allowed over 3 2/3 innings, and his fastball velocity was down to 87 mph in the contest. If Woodruff were to miss the same amount of time, it’d put him back in the middle of August. Fantasy managers need to be prepared for the right-hander to not be available for the long haul now, and the Brewers will need to make yet another change to their rotation.

Woodruff was excellent, striking out six and allowing just one hit with two free passes. Unfortunately, the 33-year-old received just one run of support, and the Brew Crew fell in extras. Still, it’s hard to not be impressed with how Woodruff has looked since his return, as he’s given up no runs in his 11 2/3 innings with 16 strikeouts in that timeframe. The 33-year-old will be back on the bump Saturday against the Diamondbacks, and he should obviously be in fantasy lineups.

Woodruff was excellent in his first start since going on the injured list with shoulder inflammation in early May. The 33-year-old right-hander allowed one hit, no walks and struck out 10 Reds batters on Monday. Woodruff threw just 79 pitches in six innings after throwing 82 pitches in his final rehab start. He’ll face the Cubs at home this weekend in his next start.

This was reported days ago, but is now official. Woodruff had a 3.60 ERA, 1.03 WHIP, and 25/7 K/BB ratio in 30 innings this season and has been out since early May with shoulder inflammation. His rehab required an injection in the shoulder capsule to help reduce swelling, and the velocity on his fastball has not quite been back to his normal levels during his rehab stint. We’d prefer to keep Woodruff on our benches for this start and watch him against an MLB offense before deciding how healthy he really is.

The saga is finally over. Woodruff will make his long-awaited return to Milwaukee’s rotation following a seven-week absence recovering from shoulder inflammation. The 33-year-old former fantasy ace shouldn’t have any workload restrictions after throwing 82 pitches during his final rehab outing for High-A Wisconsin earlier this week. The omnipresent durability concerns aren’t going away at this stage of Woodruff’s career, but he’s been a viable fantasy starter, when healthy, posting a 3.60 ERA, 1.03 WHIP and 25/7 K/BB ratio across 30 innings this season.

Woodruff threw 82 pitches while striking out five and only issuing one walk. We don’t have Statcast data at this level, but he was reportedly sitting 91-92 mph on his fastball in the first inning, which is slightly below where we usually see him, especially since that velocity likely declined as the game went on. The 33-year-old could potentially make another rehab start this weekend, but he’s trending towards returning to Milwaukee’s rotation by the end of June.

Woodruff will make another rehab start in the minors as he works his way back from the shoulder issue that has sidelined him for the overwhelming majority of 2026. The right-hander may need to make one more appearance below the MLB level after, but he’s closing in no rejoining the Brew Crew rotation before the end of June.

McCalvy adds that nothing is set in stone, but Woodruff is theoretically lined up to take the ball against the Guardians at some point next week. The 33-year-old former fantasy ace threw 68 pitches during his latest minor league rehab outing earlier this week. He’s been out with shoulder inflammation since early May.