Brewers World Series Projection 2.0: Brandon Woodruff Watch Heats Up

The Milwaukee Brewers are just a few days away from having to announce their roster for the 2026 World Series against the Tampa Bay Rays.

The big day will come on Friday. That night, Milwaukee will begin the series with Jacob Misiorowski on the hill. The Brewers will have to reveal the roster by Friday morning. There aren't a lot of question marks facing the organization right now, outside of Brandon Woodruff. If he makes the roster, someone will come off. If he doesn't make the roster, it wouldn't be a shock to see Milwaukee roll with the same roster that it did for the NLDS and the NLCS.

With that being said, here is World Series roster projection 2.0:

Catcher (2)

Oct 15, 2026; Los Angeles, California, USA; Milwaukee Brewers catcher William Contreras (24) smiles in the dugout before game four of the NLCS for the 2026 MLB Playoffs against the Los Angeles Dodgers at Uniqlo Field at Dodger Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jayne Kamin-Oncea-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

William Contreras, Gary Sanchez

Contreras is a star and Sanchez is a fan favorite who has come in handy in the clutch at points throughout the 2026 season. These two will be on the roster, barring some sort of shock. Bo Naylor is someone who could've been an interesting third option earlier in the postseason, but Milwaukee hasn't made that call. It would be a surprise if they did now.

Infielders (6)

Oct 15, 2026; Los Angeles, California, USA; Milwaukee Brewers first baseman Jake Bauers (9) celebrates after defeating the Los Angeles Dodgers in game four of the NLCS for the 2026 MLB Playoffs at Uniqlo Field at Dodger Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jayne Kamin-Oncea-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

Andrew Vaughn, Jake Bauers, Brice Turang, Cooper Pratt, Joey Ortiz, David Hamilton

Jake Bauers, Brice Turang and Cooper Pratt will likely play in every game of the World Series. Vaughn, Ortiz and Hamilton will certainly get playing time, but will be more spread out and matchup-based.

Outfielders (4)

Oct 15, 2026; Los Angeles, California, USA; Milwaukee Brewers outfielder Sal Frelick (10) celebrates in the dugout after scoring during the fifth inning against the Los Angeles Dodgers in game four of the NLCS for the 2026 MLB Playoffs at Uniqlo Field at Dodger Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jayne Kamin-Oncea-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

Jackson Chourio, Luis Lara, Garrett Mitchell, Sal Frelick

All four obviously won't be on the field at the same time, but they have all made an impact on the 2026 postseason so far.

Designated Hitter (1)

Christian Yelich

No doubt.

Starters (4)

Oct 11, 2026; Milwaukee, Wisconsin, USA; Milwaukee Brewers pitcher Jacob Misiorowski (32) reacts to a call for a balk during the fourth inning against the Los Angeles Dodgers in game one of the NLCS for the 2026 MLB Playoffs at American Family Field. Mandatory Credit: Benny Sieu-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

Jacob Misiorowski, Logan Henderson, Dustin May, Robert Gasser

Misiorowski has been named the Game 1 starter and Henderson is likely to follow in Game 2 and Gasser is likely in Game 3. We will very likely see May at some point, whether that means starting Game 4 or coming out of the bullpen.

Bullpen (9)

Jun 28, 2026; Milwaukee, Wisconsin, USA; Milwaukee Brewers pitcher Brandon Woodruff (53) throws a pitch during the first inning against the Chicago Cubs at American Family Field. Mandatory Credit: Jeff Hanisch-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

Shane Drohan, Chad Patrick, Trevor Megill, Abner Uribe, Aaron Ashby, JoJo Romero, Brandon Woodruff, DL Hall, Antonio Senzatela

In this projection, we kept Woodruff on — who was on our first World Series roster projection — and added Chad Patrick back on in place of Kyle Harrison. Neither Patrick, nor Harrison, has pitched in the postseason so far. In reality, if the Brewers are going to put Woodruff on the World Series roster, it will likely be in place of one of these two hurlers. In this scenario, we leaned towards Harrison coming off. But it could go either way. On Tuesday, Woodruff took a significant step back as he faced off against live hitters. That is one of the final hurdles for him to return.

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