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Milwaukee Brewers roundtable: Can Freddy Peralta become an ace?

By Brian Sampson

DENVER, CO - MAY 13: Starting pitcher Freddy Peralta #51 of the Milwaukee Brewers walks to the dugout after being relieved in the sixth inning against the Colorado Rockies at Coors Field on May 13, 2018 in Denver, Colorado. (Photo by Matthew Stockman/Getty Images)
DENVER, CO - MAY 13: Starting pitcher Freddy Peralta #51 of the Milwaukee Brewers walks to the dugout after being relieved in the sixth inning against the Colorado Rockies at Coors Field on May 13, 2018 in Denver, Colorado. (Photo by Matthew Stockman/Getty Images) /
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MINNEAPOLIS, MN – MAY 19: Freddy Peralta #51 of the Milwaukee Brewers delivers a pitch against the Minnesota Twins during the first inning of the interleague game on May 19, 2018 at Target Field in Minneapolis, Minnesota. (Photo by Hannah Foslien/Getty Images)
MINNEAPOLIS, MN – MAY 19: Freddy Peralta #51 of the Milwaukee Brewers delivers a pitch against the Minnesota Twins during the first inning of the interleague game on May 19, 2018 at Target Field in Minneapolis, Minnesota. (Photo by Hannah Foslien/Getty Images) /

3. What will the Brewers do with Peralta once guys like Zach Davies and Jimmy Nelson are ready to return?

Mitchell Reichert: While Peralta has already been sent down in wake of the activation of Chase Anderson, he has definitely shown to both Craig Counsell and David Stearns that he is able to help the club at the highest level. Should any of the other starters go down with an injury or prove to be ineffective down the stretch, I would expect his name to come up immediately as a replacement.

While both Brent Suter and Brandon Woodruff have a little more experience starting in the big leagues than Peralta, their ceilings are slightly below that of Peralta’s and both haven’t been overly impressive thus far this season. If nothing else, he definitely showed that he will be a reasonable rotation candidate for the Brewers as a September call-up and for next season.

Mike Wendlandt: Well, we’ve already seen what they did when Chase Anderson came back Monday night, and Freddy was sent down. They could’ve moved Suter to the bullpen and Woodruff down the minors, or even Peralta to the bullpen. But, in my opinion, they made the right move here. Woodruff is more major-league ready right now and can work out of the pen with little projection left in him. Peralta is still growing and getting stronger and will be better, in the long run, getting regular starts in AAA.

For the future, Davies is expected back this weekend and Nelson could still be back in the middle of June. Those guys will likely take the spot of Suter and Woodruff with Suter moving the bullpen and Woodruff moving to AAA with either Jorge Lopez or Taylor Williams. But Peralta is now on the radar even more and will need to be ready if another injury strikes. And for 2019 and beyond, it’ll be a fun battle for the rotation with pitchers like Peralta, Woodruff, Anderson, Nelson, Davies, Chacin, and Guerra all in the mix.

Nick Michalski: For now Peralta will refine his game in the minor leagues. However, he will likely sit at the top of the list should injury or ineffectiveness loosen one of the other starter’s grip on a rotation spot. The Brewers rotation has been continuously in flux, despite its overall steady performance.

Zach Davies is hardly a sure bet and Jimmy Nelson still faces a long road ahead to return from injury, so Peralta has good chances to return to Milwaukee before long.

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