There’s no way around it- this past week has been straight-up painful as a Brewers fan. The latest hit? Luke Barker, who made his major league debut with the Crew this season, has been designated for assignment. Although he’s only made a handful of appearances with the Brewers, he’s become a fan favorite, especially with the Brewers Twitter community.
The relief pitcher had a rocky road to the Majors. He’s enjoyed plenty of success in recent years with the Brewers minor league system. He debuted with the Brewers in June at age 30 amidst a flurry of bullpen injuries and minor league callups. He pitched two scoreless innings in that first appearance. Unfortunately, his next major league outing was less successful as he allowed four earned runs in an inning. However, he stabilized in his next (and final) appearance with the Crew, allowing one run in an inning.
Barker’s Latest Bad Luck
Just when it seemed things were going well and Barker had made his big break, things took a turn for the worse. Barker returned to AAA Nashville on June 11. He pitched well through the month. However, then he suffered a sprained UCL in his right elbow and underwent Tommy John surgery at the beginning of August. His last appearance for the Brewers’ affiliate was June 29, where he struck out 3 batters in 1.2 innings pitched.
Officially a TJ guy 🦾 pic.twitter.com/rnIYhuyQrz
— Luke Barker (@Luke_Barker17) August 3, 2022
Concurrent with his surgery, the Brewers designated Barker for assignment. The move came as a surprise, as despite the injury, he’s been pitching well. Barker has shown extreme resilience through his minor league career. Though this surgery is definitely a setback, if anyone can make it through, it will be Luke Barker. The Brewers made the move to release Barker in order to create space for Trevor Rosenthal.
Barker then released a statement and later, a follow-up describing his current situation and the Brewers’ involvement in the situation.
An update pic.twitter.com/LJ5qxiZekr
— Luke Barker (@Luke_Barker17) August 5, 2022
A further and hopefully final update pic.twitter.com/HdVIwinDGm
— Luke Barker (@Luke_Barker17) August 5, 2022
What makes this so bad?
Simply put, this is a terrible look for a team that’s already under heavy fire for its handling of the Josh Hader trade. While Barker’s second statement does appear to take the blame off of the Brewers, it still doesn’t look particularly great that the organization let him go right after surgery so they could bring in another injured pitcher, Trevor Rosenthal. Even given this morning’s update, there are a lot of questions left unanswered.
It doesn’t help the matter that the Brewers don’t have the best track record when it comes to their treatment of minor league players. Barker has been a major advocate in the fight for fair treatment for minor league players and has used his social media platforms to share his own experiences.
Just pay guys for doing their job.
Pretty simple stuff.
Awesome job on the video @MorePerfectUS @MiLBAdvocates https://t.co/i2Dhmr6sJW
— Luke Barker (@Luke_Barker17) April 29, 2022
Minor leaguers checking their W-2 @MiLBAdvocates https://t.co/F8KvWCM6ln
— Luke Barker (@Luke_Barker17) May 14, 2022
It’s a cruel twist that one of the Brewers’ most outspoken minor leaguers is now a victim of the league’s lack of protections. Best wishes to Luke Barker for a quick recovery and a successful return to baseball!
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