Milwaukee Brewers lose Bobby Wahl for the 2019 campaign
By David Hill
Bobby Wahl was expected to be another high octane arm in the Milwaukee Brewers bullpen. Instead, he has been lost for the season.
One of the three players acquired when the Milwaukee Brewers sent Keon Broxton to the New York Mets, Bobby Wahl was expected to be another high octane arm for the relief corps. Armed with a fastball that approaches 100 MPH, and a solid breaking pitch, Wahl is the type of arm that the Brewers covet in their bullpen.
Unfortunately for Milwaukee, Wahl is lost for the 2019 campaign. He suffered a torn ACL in his right knee while pitching, an injury that is truly rare.
#Brewers GM David Stearns said they found only two other cases of pitcher tearing ACL while pitching. That's how rare it is.
— Tom (@Haudricourt) March 3, 2019
This latest injury continues Wahl’s history of major medical issues. Since being drafted in 2013, Wahl has dealt with oblique and elbow issues, and underwent surgery for thoracic outlet syndrome in 2017. The talent and stuff are there when it comes to the hard throwing righty, but it is a matter of his being able to stay on the diamond.
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Although he has not had much success at the major league level, Wahl remains an intriguing talent. In 14 major league games with the A’s and Mets, he has a combined 6.92 ERA and a 1.923 WHiP, striking out 15 batters, but issuing eight walks in his 13 innings. The command just has not been there in the majors.
However, in the minors, Wahl has been dominant. Last season, he posted a 2.20 ERA and a 0.867 WHiP in his 45 innings in AAA, striking out 73 batters with only 19 walks. If he can learn to harness his stuff at the major league level, Wahl could be yet another dominant arm in the Brewers bullpen.
For now, that journey is on hold. Yet another injury has derailed Wahl’s ascension to the majors, this time, for a full season. Even though there is still time for him to become a viable major league option, at 28 years old next year, Wahl is going to begin to run out of time soon.
Next. Moustakas moving to second. dark
The Milwaukee Brewers bullpen depth took a hit as Bobby Wahl has been lost for the year due to a freak injury. While the Brewers have enough depth to cover this loss, time is starting to run out for Wahl to make an impact at the major league level.