The Milwaukee Brewers and starting pitcher Joe Ross agreed to a Major League contract earlier this off-season. This deal reunited the former 25th overall draft selection with Pat Murphy. Murphy, who is entering his first season as the Brewers manager, is connected to Ross in that he coached him in 2012 when he reported to the Class A Eugene Emeralds.
Ross’ journey in professional baseball has been filled with several ups and downs. His MLB career started off strong in that he posted ERA’s around 3.50 during his first two seasons with the Washington Nationals. Unfortunately injuries requiring surgery have plagued him following that.
In 2017 he underwent his first elbow surgery and he made just three starts that following year. 2021 marked his second surgery in which he then appeared in just one minor league game in 2022. He remained off a big league roster in 2023 and spent the year in the San Francisco Giants organization.
This winter Ross indicates that things have been a normal and healthy off-season. With having a major league contract worth $1.75 million secured he has his sights set on returning to the highest level possible.
Milwaukee Brewers starting pitcher Joe Ross makes a bold claim for his 2024 season goals.
Per Brewers beat reporter Adam McCalvy, Joe Ross doesn’t just want to comeback in 2024. Rather he wants to return to the highest level possible. Statistically speaking he performed at his best during his first 181 major league innings (2015-2016) when he posted a 3.52 ERA over 35 games and 32 starts.
“I don’t want to settle for just being back. I want to be back at the highest level.”
-Joe Ross
With the Brewers Ross will have the opportunity to earn a spot in the starting rotation. Milwaukee currently has Corbin Burnes, Freddy Peralta, and Wade Miley as locks, but after that players like Colin Rea, Aaron Ashby, and Janson Junk are expected to compete alongside Ross for a rotation spot.
“I feel like every year, in my mind, I’m competing for a spot, whether my spot is secured or not. I don’t see myself taking it easy this Spring Training.”
-Joe Ross
It will be interesting to see how Joe Ross looks once spring training gets underway and games start. Pitchers and catchers are due to report in a little over a month with games starting towards the end of February. Those Cactus League games will be important for Ross and he will be one player to monitor.
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1 Comment
Toby Roth used to say “Talk is cheap, it takes money to buy whiskey.” I wish Joe the best, but the Brewers get the previously injured, or players at the tail end of the career free agents. There’s no parity in the MLB like there is in the NFL. That’s a big reason why baseball is no longer the national pastime. It’s not the pace of the game or the size of the bases. MLB owners and players are greedy. They’re killing the Golden Goose.