Baseball fans got some disappointing news on Saturday as Milwaukee Brewers ace Jacob Misiorowski was scratched from Sunday's game against the Pittsburgh Pirates with right arm fatigue, spoiling his highly anticipated pitching matchup with Pirates ace Paul Skenes.
Misiorowski will also miss Tuesday's MLB All-Star Game.
“It [stinks] to miss a start and the All-Star Game, but I know it’s the right thing to do in this situation,” Misiorowski said via MLB.com's John Perrotto. “My arm is a little tired.”
That's not surprising given that this is Misiorowski's first full Major League season. He's also MLB's hardest-throwing starting pitcher with a league-leading 100.5 mph average four-seam fastball velocity.
On the plus side, the 24-year-old flamethrower said he won't need to go on the injured list and expects to return to the Brewers rotation after the All-Star Break.
"There’s no imaging or none of that stuff going on. We’re just giving him a rest and he needs some time away from throwing," manager Pat Murphy said via FSRWI's Hunter Baumgardt.
Misiorowski last pitched on July 7 against the St. Louis Cardinals, allowing three runs on three hits with 11 strikeouts over seven innings. He's given up more hard contact than usual lately, however, surrendering five home runs over his last three starts.
Accordingly, Milwaukee is apparently being cautious with its young ace to help preserve his arm for the second half. The Brewers lead the NL Central by six games, but they'll need the MLB ERA leader to be healthy and effective down the stretch.
In the meantime, lefty Robert Gasser will start against Skenes in Sunday afternoon's series finale at PNC Park.