Brewers activate Brandon Woodruff, option Chad Patrick to Triple-A Nashville

The long-awaited return of Woodruff is finally here

The day Brewers fans have waited for is finally here: Brandon Woodruff is finally back on a big league mound.

The team made it official Sunday morning, as they announced Woodruff, who hasn’t started a game since September 2023, was activated from the injured list. Fellow right-hander Chad Patrick was optioned to Triple-A Nashville to open up the active spot, while outfielder Garrett Mitchell was moved to the 60-day IL to open up the 40-man spot.

None of the three moves comes as much of a surprise, as Woodruff was announced as Sunday’s starter earlier this week. Patrick, who stepped into a rotation role early in the season as several arms went down with injury, has performed admirably this season, with a 3.52 ERA and 3.53 FIP through 19 games (18 starts). He’s also struck out 95 batters over 94 ²⁄₃ innings, filling the role that Tobias Myers took on in 2024.

For now, he’ll head to Triple-A Nashville, but barring any surprises, this isn’t the last we’ve seen of him in the majors.

Mitchell, who was rehabbing an oblique injury throughout June, suffered a shoulder injury during the rehab assignment. He underwent surgery — his second on his left shoulder — last week. He’s been ruled out for the remainder of 2025.

Woodruff, who has faced multiple setbacks of his own, is finally set to make his first start in the majors in 652 days. In seven career seasons with Milwaukee, Woodruff has made 130 appearances (115 starts) with a 3.10 ERA, 3.19 FIP, and 788 strikeouts across 680 ¹⁄₃ innings.