Milwaukee Brewers starting pitcher Brandon Woodruff Kamil Krzaczynski-USA TODAY Sports

Brewers provide ominous update on injured two-time All-Star

By Mike Santa Barbara | Last updated 4/15/23

Despite cruising through his first two starts of the 2023 season, Milwaukee Brewers righty Brandon Woodruff has been shut down for a still undetermined amount of time as he deals with lingering shoulder issues.

On Saturday, Brewers manager Craig Counsell told reporters that Woodruff had been diagnosed with a scapular strain in his throwing arm and won't pitch during the team's current road trip, which wraps up on April 19 against the Seattle Mariners. Counsell said doctors would re-evaluate Woodruff once he returns to Milwaukee, and then they'll devise a rehab plan.

Brandon Woodruff update: He has a sub-scap strain and won’t do any throwing on this road trip. So, he’ll miss more than the original two-week estimate. How much more is TBD.
— Adam McCalvy (@AdamMcCalvy) April 15, 2023

Woodruff's injury won't require surgery, but his timetable for a return to the mound is genuinely up in the air.

Speaking with reporters on Saturday, a frustrated Woodruff confirmed that he planned to "not pick up a baseball" until the team gets back to Milwaukee.

Woodruff has allowed only one earned run, posting 12 strikeouts in 11.1 innings pitched over two starts this season. However, he revealed that his shoulder issues began during his previous start on April 7 against the St. Louis Cardinals, whom he earned a win against after pitching 5.1 innings of scoreless baseball in a 4-0 Brewers' victory.

"I knew something wasn't right, but my stuff was still good, so I didn't really know what to think of it," Woodruff said via Todd Rosiak of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. "I thought I just had some normal stuff that you kind of just deal with through the process of getting ready for the next start, and I just wasn't recovering."

The 30-year-old has been remarkably durable during his time with the Brewers, making 57 starts over the last two seasons. Though initially expected to miss around two weeks of action, Woodruff likely has a long road of recovery ahead before he makes his next start.

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