Injured Brewers Pitcher Begins Rehab Assignment

It was a significant step for Hall, 25, who went on the injured list on April 21 following a severe left knee sprain. The injury happened as he was fielding a bunt in the bottom of the second inning in a 12-5 road victory over the St. Louis Cardinals. The promising 6-foot-2, 203-pounder was off to a tough start since his acquisition from the Baltimore Orioles. He was part of a controversial, highly-publicized offseason trade for former NL Cy Young Award winner Corbin Burnes. Hall was 0-1 with a 7.71 earned run average in four starts this season. He allowed 14 earned runs on 27 hits with 13 strikeouts and 10 walks through 16 1/3 innings of work.

Prior to the frustrating April setback, Hall had utilized a four-seam fastball, changeup, curveball, and slider ranging in speed from 83.3 to 92.3 MPH, according to Baseball Savant. His eventual return to the Brewers’ starting rotation would bring a much-needed boost to the team’s starting pitching depth. He would potentially rejoin the likes of newly anointed ace Freddy Peralta, Colin Rea, Joe Ross, Bryse Wilson, and Robert Gasser.

The National League Central-leading Brewers, 27-19 overall, are currently 10th in the NL and 17th in Major League Baseball in team pitching with a 4.07 ERA through 407 innings.

Injured Brewers Pitcher Staying Positive About Progress

The former 2017 first-round draft pick of the Baltimore Orioles is taking a positive, gradual approach to the rehab assignment. “I’m making some big strides forward,” said an upbeat Hall in a postgame interview following the appearance. “It wasn’t exactly perfect or where I want to be yet as an end result. That’s why I have a few more weeks on this rehab assignment to keep building. Today was a huge step in the right direction. I’m feeling super good and stable on my leg so now just want to keep building off of it. I’ve always thrown really hard so being able to consistently top out in the mid-90s remains a point of emphasis. The multiple 95’s was the best I’ve had all season so hopefully it just keeps picking up in the weeks to come.”

With the injury coming to Hall’s push-off knee, attempting to restore his velocity has been a slow, steady process. “I’ve always been a super big leg driver,” added Hall, who has struggled with his left knee since 2021 but continued to play through it until tweaking it again this year. “It’s where my velocity came from and has taken stress off my throwing arm. Having a super stable and strong lower body has been important. To add that missing link will be a key to my development. Now it’s all about continuing to build strength. With that the velocity should improve.”

Hall made his MLB debut on August 13, 2022 with the Orioles. Following the positive rehab outing, Hall’s next appearance is expected to be with the Brewers’ Triple-A affiliate, the Nashville Sounds.