When the Milwaukee Brewers decided to trade Freddy Peralta to the New York Mets, the long-term message was clear. It was a strategic move for the future, a reallocation of value in a context where the team needed more flexibility. But in the short term, that decision left a void that wouldn’t be easy to fill — especially on the mound.
Peralta wasn’t just an ace. He was a cornerstone. And now, the Brewers are entering a season where they need more than one miracle to patch that production.
Milwaukee’s answer doesn’t lie in the free agent market. It lies in the farm system — and more specifically, in Coleman Crow.
Crow, 25, is increasingly being mentioned as a true breakout candidate. When healthy, he has shown why the Brewers have been patient. Ten Double-A starts last season, a 2.51 ERA, nearly 11 strikeouts per nine innings, and most importantly: just 1.67 walk/9. For a pitcher returning from major surgery, those numbers aren’t just pretty—they’re reassuring.
But Crow’s story has never been simple.
He’s faced a string of injuries, and every time things seemed to be getting going, his body forced him to stop. Late last season, after two short but ultimately unsuccessful starts in the Triple-A, Crow had to shut down again due to hip injury and flexor strain. Since the start of 2023, he’s only thrown a total of 74 innings. For a team desperately needing pitching, that’s both hopeful and worrying.
The Brewers understand that. They won’t rush. No one in Milwaukee is saying Crow will enter the Opening Day rotation. But they also know that if this season has a turning point, it’s very likely to come from an arm like his—a pitcher not yet worn down by MLB, but mature enough not to be swept away.
Crow dominated Double-A with sharp breaking balls, a rare command ability for an arm who had undergone surgery. The only downside was Triple-A — where he was hit hard in a very small number of innings. But even that didn’t deter the Brewers. What they saw wasn’t three bad innings, but the whole picture.
With Peralta gone, the Brewers couldn’t rely on a one-on-one replacement. They needed multiple young arms to move forward. But Crow still stood out — not because he was guaranteed to succeed, but because his potential ceiling was higher than the rest.
If he stays healthy, a call-up in the second half of the season is entirely possible. And then, the Brewers don’t need Crow to be an ace immediately. They need him to show that the decision to sell Peralta didn’t leave the team in an insurmountable void.
Crow represents this season for the Brewers: lots of potential, lots of risk, and very few safe options. The question is no longer whether he has enough talent. It’s whether his body will allow that talent to emerge at the moment Milwaukee needs it most.
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