Brewers getting surprisingly strong season from rookie right-hander

Tobias Myers' journey to the Milwaukee Brewers hasn't been easy.

For eight years, the 26-year-old right-hander bounced around the minors with five different organizations until he found a home with Milwaukee, where he is quietly putting together a strong rookie season.

“This kid continues to work in between starts and continues to be serious about his unexpected arrival in the big leagues," Brewers manager Pat Murphy said earlier this summer, per the Associated Press . "He himself will tell you he didn't know he was going to be here."

In 2022, Myers endured a bleak season, pitching for three different Triple-A teams and posting a combined 1-15 record and 7.82 ERA in 23 starts. By the end of the season, he was released, leaving his future in baseball a question.

Two months later, the Brewers saw potential in Myers and signed him to a minor-league deal for the 2023 season. He began the season in Double-A with the Biloxi Shuckers.

Over 26 starts, Myers showed flashes of promise, compiling a 10-5 record with a 5.03 ERA in 137.2 innings. Those numbers aren't eye-popping, but his improvement was evident, and the Brewers rewarded him with a late-season promotion to Triple-A with the Nashville Sounds.

This season with Nashville, Myers started to put everything together. In five games and three starts, he posted a stellar 1.45 ERA with 24 strikeouts in 18.2 innings. Although the sample size was small, it was enough for Milwaukee to call him up to the big leagues.

"Early on in my career, I was just trying to force results," Myers told Brewers.com . "And it didn't really go so well."

In his MLB debut against the Pittsburgh Pirates, he tossed five innings, allowing one run on four hits and striking out four.

In 17 starts, Myers has a 6-5 record with a 2.79 ERA. In his past five starts, spanning 29 2/3 innings, he has a 1.21 ERA, 0.84 WHIP and 28 strikeouts.

Though listed as the fourth starter in the rotation, Myers is delivering performances that rival some big-league aces. His surprising showing could be key to a deep postseason run for the first-place Brewers.

"(I am) just trying to keep the good times rolling," Myers said.