What you see during the game is the culmination of countless hours these players and coaches have poured into their craft off the field, and right now, the Milwaukee Brewers are reaping the fruits of their labor. After a hot start, the Brewers rank fourth in the entire MLB in ERA so far this season at 3.42. Much of that success comes from the emergence of Jacob Misiorowski and Kyle Harrison, who are coming into their own as two of the best young pitchers in the entire sport.
But what are they actually doing to get to this point?
Well, much of that can be credited to the hard work of Brewers pitching coach Chris Hook, a former MLB reliever who has been with the organization since 2018. From coaching Corbin Burnes to a Cy Young Award in 2021 to affirming Milwaukee as one of the best pitching cores in baseball today, Hook is quietly one of the heroes of this ballclub, setting players up for success and growth behind the scenes throughout their early careers.
During a recent interview on MLB TV, Hook was asked about the developmental processes for both the Miz and Harrison, and what he's worked on to prepare them to play at this level, starting with Misiorowski.
"It's body control and moving that body as fast as we can get it, and that's where you get 100 MPH. This guy is athletic, he's tremendously competitive, and I think that really stands out for us," Hook said of Misiorowski's progression. "I think it was just, for him, starting to understand how his body works."
And as for what's working with Kyle Harrison...
"He's a tremendously talented guy that just needed to simplify what he was doing, get a better understanding of how stuff worked and, you know, we changed a few things," Hook explained. "When you start compounding some positive things on top of that, things really start rolling."
When you're putting that much attention to detail into player development, it's bound to pay off.
Chris Hook is the unsung hero of the Milwaukee Brewers' pitching core.
Having such a thoughtful leader on player development and mechanics goes a long way in helping a pitcher reach their full potential, and Chris Hook deserves all the flowers in the world for the work he's done to position the Milwaukee Brewers as having one of the best bullpens in baseball.
It's easy to single out the two young starters as the reason why Hook is so important to this team, but think about everyone else in the bullpen. He's been with the MLB wins leader, Aaron Ashby, every year of his career so far, as he has with closer Abner Uribe as well. Hook and manager Pat Murphy are building developmental plans that highlight the strengths of each individual.
It's not a 'one size fits all' approach in Milwaukee. There are players with all different skill sets, personalities, and backgrounds whom Hook is responsible for connecting with and helping grow. This is a job that's more about people than it is about baseball, which, frankly, could be even harder than a traditional coaching job.
So hats off to Chris Hook, because for as much as it's paying off for the entire team and the pitchers mentioned above, this is also the culmination of his hard work over the years in Milwaukee, and that shouldn't go overlooked.
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