The Brewers will be placing right-hander Trevor Megill on the 15-day injured list due to a back problem, according to multiple members of the team’s beat (including Curt Hogg of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel).
Acquired in a trade with the Twins in April 2023, Megill is the latest in a string of relievers to hit a new level of performance after coming to Milwaukee. Megill had a 6.03 ERA over his first 68 2/3 career big league innings with the Cubs and Twins in 2021-22, but with some intriguing secondary metrics that hinted at a higher ceiling, and he delivered on that potential with a 3.63 ERA over 34 2/3 frames with Milwaukee last season.
Megill has been even better in 2024, with a 2.41 ERA and excellent walk (5.9%) and strikeout (29.4%) rates over 33 2/3 innings in the Crew’s bullpen. While he has allowed a lot of hard contact and has become rather an extreme fly ball pitcher this season, Megill’s 98.8mph fastball has been one of baseball’s more dominant offerings, pairing nicely with his curve to fool batters.
This performance has come in several high-leverage circumstances, as Megill has acted as Milwaukee’s closer (saving 20 of 23 chances) while Devin Williams has missed almost the entire season due to stress fractures in his back. Williams only made his season debut yesterday, so the Brewers are facing some unfortunate irony in losing Megill to a back problem just as Williams returns. Bryan Hudson was also just placed on the 15-day IL due to an oblique strain, in another big hit to the relief corps. Nick Mears was acquired in a trade with the Rockies on Saturday, but with Hudson and now Megill both out, the Brewers could certainly look to further bolster the bullpen prior to tomorrow’s trade deadline.