Milwaukee Brewers: Matt Garza to Return to Rotation on Monday

The Milwaukee Brewers will get veteran RHP Matt Garza back early next week.

This past Friday, the Milwaukee Brewers announced that starting pitcher Matt Garza will soon be returning to the starting rotation. The right-hander is set to make his 2017 debut against the Cincinnati Reds on Monday. The addition of Garza to the rotation will also move Tommy Milone to the bullpen, the team has announced.

Garza, who is now in his fourth season with the Brewers, has been sidelined with a groin injury for the first few weeks of the season. He has made two rehab starts in the minor leagues. Garza had one rather stellar rehab outing in which he gave up only one earned run over five innings of work for Triple-A Colorado Springs.

After a solid first season in Milwaukee, Garza has gone just 12-22 with a 5.18 ERA (79 ERA+) and a 1.54 WHIP through 45 games (44 starts) over the past two years. However, prior to 2015, Garza was an above average pitcher for a long time, posting a 109 ERA+ between 2007-14. He shouldn’t be too far over the hill at just 33 years of age.

Potential Impact of Garza’s Return

The Brewers, who haven’t had a winning season since 2014 and haven’t reached the postseason since 2011, are off to a decent start this year. The Brewers are currently in third place in an extremely tough NL Central division with a 9-9 record. The team is showing signs of improvement and the power surge of Eric Thames has certainly been fun to watch.

However, the starting rotation currently ranks 29th in MLB with a 4.88 ERA. A healthy Garza could bolster a staff that also includes Zach Davies, Wily Peralta, Chase Anderson and Jimmy Nelson. Even if he can’t get back to being the pitcher he once was, Garza should be able to provide an upgrade to the back end of the Brewers rotation. Milone has gotten off to a shaky start in 2017, posting a 5.63 ERA over four games (three starts).

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Garza has gone 87-97 with a 4.03 ERA (102 ERA+) and a 1.31 WHIP over an 11-year career in which he has played for the Minnesota Twins, Tampa Bay Rays, Chicago Cubs, Texas Rangers and Brewers.