Misiorowski's promising debut hits speed bump. Plus: Youth movement in Anaheim

New York Times

17 hours ago

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It was the best of debuts for Jacob Misiorowski … until it ended early. Plus: The Angels call up (another) prospect, the Rangers offense is maybe not dead and Ken tells us why Ryan Yarbrough's a Yankee. I'm Levi Weaver, here with Ken Rosenthal. Welcome to The Windup!
The news broke Tuesday: Milwaukee was calling up 23-year-old flame thrower Jacob Misiorowski to start against the Cardinals.
In 63 1/3 innings at Triple-A Nashville, Misiorowski — No. 87 on Keith Law's top 100 prospects list and No. 5 on his Brewers list — had an ERA of 2.13, with 80 strikeouts and 31 walks. Here's how the debut went:
First inning: 1-2-3
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Second inning: 1-2-3 with a strikeout
Third inning: 1-2-3, sorta: a walk, a double play and a strikeout
Fourth inning: two walks, but still no hits
Fifth inning: 1-2-3, with two strikeouts
Three pitches into the sixth inning: a minor disaster. After Misiorowski threw ball three to Victor Scott II, this happened (watch the right ankle).
MUST SEE: Jacob Misiorowski's first three pitches to start his Major League career:
100 MPH 🔥102 MPH 🔥101 MPH 🔥 pic.twitter.com/gObMMacPDT
— MLB (@MLB) June 12, 2025
Misiorowski left the game — right calf and quad cramping, of all things — and while reliever Nick Mears kept the no-hitter intact for the rest of the sixth inning, Cardinals first baseman Willson Contreras singled off Aaron Ashby to start the seventh inning.
(Not to get too sidetracked, but Contreras then attempted to steal and was thrown out by his brother William, who catches for the Brewers. I await Jayson Stark's confirmation on how often this has happened in history.)
Anyway, what a debut for Misiorowski, huh?
Oh, by the way, the 37-33 Brewers won 6-0 to leapfrog the Cardinals for second place in the NL Central. All it took was for me to go and declare St. Louis this year's Plot Twist, and now they're mired in a five-game losing streak. Sorry 'bout it, Cardinals fans.
More Brewers: Yesterday morning, the Brewers started their day on social media by wishing pitcher Aaron Civale happy birthday. Hours later, news broke that Civale — relegated to the bullpen for the first time in his career — had requested a trade.
From my latest column:
Right-hander Jacob Barnes and lefty Richard Lovelady are best described as journeymen. Most baseball fans would not even recognize their names. Yet, those are the two pitchers the Blue Jays chose over left-hander Ryan Yarbrough for their Opening Day roster, only to designate both for assignment less than a month later.
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Yarbrough, after declining a revised offer from the Jays, opted out of his minor-league contract, became a free agent and signed with the New York Yankees. He started out in the Yankees' bullpen, then joined their injury-depleted rotation in early May and produced a stunning 2.08 ERA in his first five starts before faltering last Saturday against the Boston Red Sox.
As the Jays await the return of righty Max Scherzer and ponder the regression of righty Bowden Francis, they can only wonder how Yarbrough, a pitcher who was firmly under their control, might have fit.
The Jays, winners of 12 of their last 14 games and holding the top wild-card position in the American League, are not exactly suffering. Lefty Eric Lauer, signed to a minor-league deal in December, is proving a reasonable facsimile of Yarbrough. If Scherzer makes a successful return from his right thumb injury by the end of June, the team's decision on Yarbrough at the end of March might prove little more than a footnote.
Yarbrough is the kind of pitcher who is easy to overlook. His fastball is among the slowest in the majors, averaging just 87.5 mph. Yet Erik Neander, his former president of baseball operations with the Tampa Bay Rays, describes him as 'absolutely fearless, incredibly savvy and somebody who gets the absolute most out of their abilities.'
'How do you know someone has special makeup?' Neander asked with a chuckle. 'They're getting guys out in the big leagues throwing 86 mph.'
The Blue Jays, after acquiring Yarbrough last July 30 from the Los Angeles Dodgers for outfielder Kevin Kiermaier and cash, came to understand what makes the pitcher unique. They re-signed him on Feb. 21, and after he triggered his opt-out clause in late March, they had the ability to keep him by adding him to their major-league roster.
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The Jays were willing to do that — with a catch. They asked Yarbrough to sign an advance-consent clause, allowing them to release him within the first 45 days of the regular season and terminate the rest of his $2 million guarantee. The Yankees, Yarbrough said, made him the same offer, but with a different incentive structure.
Yarbrough was willing to accept that deal from the Yankees, a team he admired from afar for its ability to get the most out of pitchers. He wasn't willing to accept it from the Jays, for whom he had a 2.01 ERA in 31 1/3 innings after the trade, pitching in a variety of roles out of the bullpen.
More here.
There's quite the youth movement happening in Anaheim. This year, no fewer than 14 players age 25 or younger have suited up for the Halos. Six are currently on the active roster, and here are the numbers of minor-league games they've played:
There are some 'normal' ones there, but that chart doesn't include Caden Dana (21 years old, 52 minor-league games), Ben Joyce (24, 47 minor-league games, currently on 60-day IL) or Ryan Johnson (22, five minor-league games) — all of whom have appeared in at least one game for the Angels this year.
There's about to be another one. Twenty-two-year-old infielder Christian Moore, the No. 8 pick in last year's draft, is being called up to join the team in Baltimore. Moore was Law's No. 2 Angels prospect. After struggling in 34 Double-A games this year (.665 OPS), he was promoted to Triple A, where he hit .350/.424/.575 (.999 OPS) with four home runs in 20 games.
Interestingly, while Moore has only played in 79 minor-league games, the call-up is actually later than expected — he was set to debut last September before a knee injury.
The Angels aren't the only organization to do this sometimes — Wyatt Langford made the Texas Rangers' Opening Day roster in 2024 after just 44 minor-league games, for example — but they seem to have a more aggressive promotion philosophy than most.
The story of the 2025 Rangers has been simple: great pitching; the offense stinks.
We'll need a bigger sample size than six games against the Nationals and a struggling Twins rotation, but any time a team scores 16 runs twice in one series, it's worth raising an eyebrow and side-eyeing them a little bit.
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Emblematic of both the struggle and the renaissance: second baseman Marcus Semien.
Opening Day through May 28 (223 plate appearances): .173/.260/.224 (.485 OPS), three home runs
May 29 through yesterday: (48 PAs) .429/.500/.786 (1.286), four home runs
Semien isn't alone. Evan Carter has hit home runs in three out of four games. Josh Smith has been red-hot, and Jake Burger has looked like a different player since his short stay in the minor leagues. Six Rangers homered yesterday.
Is it a flash in the pan? Maybe, but their next 18 games should give them a chance to lock in. They face the White Sox, Royals, Pirates, Orioles, Mariners and Orioles again. Every one of those teams is (like the 33-36 Rangers) below .500, save for the Royals (34-34).
This is kind of a big deal: While MLB has previously refused to acknowledge any changes to the baseballs, this year, the league admits there's a difference in how the baseballs are behaving. MLB insists there have been no changes and it's just as confused as the rest of us.
My favorite read of the day: Matt Gelb has a brilliant profile on the Phillies' one-of-a-kind starter Zack Wheeler, who does things his own way.
Tyler Kepner's 'Sliders' column starts with MacKenzie Gore and ends with umpire impersonations.
These days, we get heartwarming videos when a prospect is called up. Steve Buckley talked to a few guys whose call-ups happened in the pre-MySpace days.
Mets starter Kodai Senga is headed to the IL with a strained hamstring.
Welcome our new intern Dhani Joseph, who asks: What happens when the pope wears your hat?
Last year's Tigers surprised people. This year, it's just who they are, says Britt Ghiroli.
With a month and a half til the trade deadline, who needs what, and how urgently? It's the Trade Deadline Urgency Index 1.0.
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Meanwhile, Jim Bowden gives us 20 deadline-related things he's hearing.
And lastly, a correction. In yesterday's Windup, I mentioned a story in the Boston Globe. It was, in fact, the Boston Herald. Apologies. (At least I got the link right?)
On the pods: The 'Rates and Barrels' crew asks if the Rangers might consider offers on Jacob deGrom, and highlights some overlooked hitters from this year.
Most-clicked in our last newsletter: Keith Law's 2025 Mock Draft 2.0, with Oregon State shortstop Aiva Arquette at No. 1.
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