Milwaukee Brewers manager Craig Counsell unveiled his five-man starting pitching rotation on Thursday and Freddy Peralta has landed the spot as the fifth and final starter in that rotation.
Peralta settled into the fifth spot after a solid spring in which he pitched 8 1/3 innings in three appearances with one start. He struck out 15 hitters, had a 1.08 ERA and a 1.32 WHIP. In his last appearance, a start against Seattle, he allowed a home run and a walk with five strikeouts in 4 2/3 innings of work.
“I thought his last start against Seattle was a great example of, he’s pitching like a starting pitcher,” Counsell said. “The rhythm of the game, the pitches he used, the weapons he had for different hitters, different handed-ness of hitters…just really a complete step up from a couple years ago when he had to rely on the fastball, essentially.”
“He’s worked really hard to get to this place and I think he’s had a great spring. He’s added things to his game that I think give him a chance of having a great, great season.”
It means Josh Lindblom will start the season pitching out of the bullpen. [Read more…]