The Milwaukee Brewers are headed to Florida, as they’ll make a visit to the Miami Marlins this weekend. Milwaukee, sitting at 10-8 on the season, are coming off a series win over the Blue Jays after losing six straight, as a pair of 2-1 wins in the last two days gave the squad a bit of momentum heading into the weekend. The Marlins had a similarly hot start to Milwaukee followed by some struggles. After starting 8-5 this year, they’ve lost five of their last six against the Tigers and Braves, falling
below .500 for the first time this season.
Kyle Harrison is the latest Brewer dealing with an injury, as his start scheduled for Friday was pushed back (more on that below). Offensively, the Brewers are without three of their leaders in Christian Yelich (groin strain), Jackson Chourio (fractured hand), and Andrew Vaughn (fractured hamate bone). On the pitching side, Craig Yoho is the closest to returning as he’s rehabbing from a calf strain. Quinn Priester is hoping to return in May for neurogenic thoracic outlet syndrome, while Rob Zastryzny suffered a setback and is now hoping to return in May. Reliever Jared Koenig is also out with a UCL sprain in his throwing arm, and outfielder Akil Baddoo is out until June with a quad strain.
The Marlins have mostly stayed healthy to this point, especially on the pitching front. While Adam Mazur and Ronny Henriquez are both out for the season, that’s it in terms of arm injuries. Offensively, outfielders Esteury Ruiz, Kyle Stowers, and Griffin Conine are all shelved, with Stowers the closest to returning (likely in the next week or so). Infielder Maximo Acosta could also be back soon, while Christopher Morel is targeting a late April/early May return from an oblique strain.
Jake Bauers and Gary Sánchez sit tied atop Milwaukee’s leaderboard with five homers each thus far, followed by Brice Turang, who has been the Brewers’ best hitter overall with a .300/.425/.567 line. William Contreras has also gotten off to a solid start, hitting .317/.411/.476 with a pair of homers, four doubles, and 11 RBIs through 16 games. Brandon Lockridge, Sal Frelick, Garrett Mitchell, David Hamilton, Greg Jones, Luis Matos, Joey Ortiz, Blake Perkins, and Luis Rengifo round out Milwaukee’s offense. As a team, the Brewers are hitting .238/.339/.380 (.719 OPS ranks 12th) with 18 homers (16th), 91 runs scored (ninth), and 27 steals (first).
Catcher Liam Hicks leads Miami with four homers this year, as he’s hitting .309/.355/.545 through 18 games. Owen Caissie, Otto Lopez, and Connor Norby have each added a pair of homers, while Xavier Edwards and Agustín Ramírez have a homer each. Edwards and Lopez are both out to hot starts, hitting .338/.405/.479 and .328/.387/.507, respectively. Deyvison De Los Santos, Leo Jiménez, Graham Pauley, Javier Sanoja, Heriberto Hernández, Jakob Marsee, and Austin Slater round out the squad for Miami. As a team, the Marlins are hitting .259/.332/.398 (.730 OPS ranks eighth) with 14 homers (tied for 25th), 88 runs scored (10th), and 25 steals (tied for second).
The Brewer bullpen is led by workhorse Aaron Ashby, who has allowed five runs and struck out 22 over 14 innings this season, with a perfect 5-0 record. Grant Anderson and Angel Zerpa each have nine appearances, with a blow-up appearance for both pushing their ERAs superficially high (Anderson at 3.72 over 9 2/3 innings, Zerpa at 5.40 over 10 innings). DL Hall still hasn’t allowed a run over 8 2/3 innings, while Abner Uribe may be Milwaukee’s new closer, with a 4.91 ERA over 7 1/3 innings. Trevor Megill finally recorded a clean inning in Thursday’s series finale, but his ERA still sits at 12.00 for the year (eight runs over six innings). Jake Woodford and Easton McGee round out the Brewer bullpen. As a staff, the Brewers have a 3.99 team ERA (15th), including a 3.99 starter ERA (15th) and a 4.00 bullpen ERA (16th). They’ve struck out 163 batters (13th) over 160 innings.
Miami’s top three bullpen arms heading into the season — closer Pete Fairbanks, Calvin Faucher, and Anthony Bender — have all gotten off to rough starts. Fairbanks has a 10.80 ERA and a blown save in five appearances, Faucher has a 4.50 ERA over seven appearances, and Bender has a 6.43 ERA and two blown saves in eight appearances. The good news, though, is the rest of the bullpen has been solid. John King and Tyler Phillips lead the way, as King has a 1.42 ERA over 6 1/3 innings and Phillips has a 0.84 ERA over 10 2/3 innings. Andrew Nardi (6.00 ERA over six innings), Michael Petersen (3.38 ERA over eight innings), and UW-Whitewater alumnus Lake Bachar (3.00 ERA over nine innings) round out Miami’s bullpen. As a staff, the Marlins have a 4.15 team ERA (18th), including a 4.66 starter ERA (25th) and a 3.30 bullpen ERA (eighth). They’ve struck out 165 batters (12th) over 165 innings.
Probable Pitchers
Friday, April 17 @ 6:10 p.m.: TBD vs. RHP Janson Junk (0-2, 4.32 ERA, 4.00 FIP)
This would be Brewer left-hander Kyle Harrison’s turn through the rotation, but Adam McCalvy reported his next start would be pushed back due to some lingering wrist soreness from a fall while covering first base in his last outing. To fill the gap, it seems possible that right-hander Coleman Crow will make his MLB debut, after McCalvy reported Crow was removed as the probable starter for Triple-A Nashville on Thursday evening. Crow, 25, was a 28th-round pick by the Angels in 2019, back when there were more than 20 rounds of the draft. He came to Milwaukee as the return for Adrian Houser and Tyrone Taylor in the 2023-24 offseason, and he’s now ranked as the Brewers’ No. 27 prospect. Added to the 40-man roster to protect him from the Rule 5 Draft this past offseason, Crow has made three appearances (two starts) with Nashville this year, with a 4.02 ERA and 18 strikeouts across 15 2/3 innings.
Junk, 30, is in his sixth MLB season and second with the Marlins. A former Brewer (seven appearances between 2023 and 2024), Junk has become a regular in Miami’s rotation over the last season-plus. He’s made three starts this year, with a 4.32 ERA, 4.00 FIP, and 12 strikeouts over 16 2/3 innings. His last outing spanned five innings against the Tigers, when he allowed five runs (four earned) on five hits and two walks, striking out four. His only appearance against the Brewers came last July, when he went five innings, allowing three runs and striking out five in a 7-4 victory for Miami.
Saturday, April 18 @ 3:10 p.m.: RHP Brandon Woodruff (1-0, 4.32 ERA, 4.30 FIP) vs. RHP Sandy Alcantara (2-1, 2.67 ERA, 3.68 FIP)
Woodruff is three starts into his ninth MLB season, with a 4.32 ERA, 4.30 FIP, and 16 strikeouts across 16 2/3 innings to this point. He bounced back from a rough outing against the Red Sox (5 2/3 IP, 5 ER, 4 K) to go six innings against the Nationals over the weekend, allowing two runs (one earned) with three hits and a walk, striking out six. Woodruff has been great against Miami in his career, with a 2.61 ERA and 38 strikeouts over 38 innings across six starts. He went 12 innings with 14 strikeouts and three runs allowed (2.25 ERA) in two starts against them last season.
Alcantara, 30, is also in his ninth MLB season. The 2022 NL Cy Young winner had a pair of rough seasons wrapped around a Tommy John surgery that kept him out for all of 2024, but he’s bounced back nicely thus far in 2026. Through four starts, Alcantara has a 2.67 ERA, 3.68 FIP, and 22 strikeouts over 30 1/3 innings. He got roughed up in his last appearance, allowing seven runs on 10 hits and two walks, striking out four over six innings. In seven career appearances (five starts) against Milwaukee, Alcantara has a 3.08 ERA and 30 strikeouts over 38 innings. He went six innings with five runs allowed and four strikeouts against the Crew on the Fourth of July last year.
Sunday, April 19 @ 12:40 p.m.: RHP Jacob Misiorowski (1-1, 3.32 ERA, 4.03 FIP) vs. RHP Eury Pérez (1-1, 5.40 ERA, 5.71 FIP)
Misiorowski has had his fair share of good and bad through four starts this season. He has a 3.32 ERA and 4.03 FIP across his 21 2/3 innings, leading the NL with 33 strikeouts but also walking nine and hitting two batters. Even so, his WHIP sits at 1.015, and his 13.7 K/9 rate leads the majors. His last start came Monday against the Blue Jays, when he went 5 1/3 innings, allowing two runs (both solo homers) on five hits with five strikeouts, though he didn’t walk any batters on 76 pitches, a good sign for the 24-year-old right-hander. This marks his first career appearance against Miami.
Pérez, who just turned 23 this week, is already in his third MLB season (not including a missed 2024 due to injury). After a solid rookie campaign in 2023, he hasn’t had as much success in 2025 and 2026. Through four starts this year, he has a 5.40 ERA, 5.71 FIP, and 20 strikeouts over 20 innings. His last appearance against the Braves went four innings, when he allowed four runs (three earned) on seven hits and a pair of walks, striking out two. He’s made two starts against Milwaukee in his career, with a 3.72 ERA and 13 strikeouts across 9 2/3 innings.
How to Watch & Listen
Friday, April 17: Brewers TV; listen via radio on the Brewers Radio Network (620 WTMJ in Milwaukee)
Saturday, April 18: Brewers TV; listen via radio on the Brewers Radio Network (620 WTMJ in Milwaukee)
Sunday, April 19: Brewers TV; listen via radio on the Brewers Radio Network (620 WTMJ in Milwaukee)
Prediction
This is a series featuring a pair of teams who got out to hot starts but have cooled off drastically over the last couple of weeks. I’ll take the Brewers to prevail here and take two of three.
