Brandon Woodruff Injury: Hits 80-pitch mark in rehab start

Woodruff (elbow/ankle/shoulder) struck out one and allowed four earned runs on four hits and three walks across 3.2 innings in his rehab start Sunday with Triple-A Nashville.

Though his results were less-than-stellar in what was his 10th rehab start overall, Woodruff more importantly emerged from Sunday's outing healthy while also tossing 82 pitches (53 strikes). The right-hander sported an average fastball velocity of 93 miles per hour -- just under two ticks behind his average from his last healthy season in 2023 -- and topped out at 95.4 mph. Assuming he feels fine physically coming out of his next bullpen session, Woodruff is expected to return from the 60-day injured list to make a start next weekend in Miami in what will be his first appearance for the Brewers since Sept. 23, 2023. He didn't pitch at any level in 2024 while recovering from his October 2023 right shoulder capsule surgery and had his rehab assignment sidetracked by a bout with right ankle tendinitis in May and a right elbow contusion earlier this month, but Woodruff was effective on the whole in his 10 starts between Nashville and High-A Wisconsin, logging a 2.79 ERA, 1.17 WHIP and 35:12 K:BB in 42 innings. Though expectations should be tempered for Woodruff as he makes his way back from a lengthy stay on the IL, he'll at least make for a worthwhile speculative pickup in shallow or mid-sized leagues where he might still be available on the waiver wire.