Despite a staff ERA of nearly 5.00 and 21 losses from starting pitching this season, the Brewers have had continued success from one member of the starting rotation. That man, Jimmy Nelson, has a 4-3 record to pair with his 2.92 ERA on the year.

It’s no secret that the Brewers are in the middle of a massive rebuild and expectations are at an all-time low. However, it is always promising to see success from a pitcher that looks to be one of the cornerstones of this team moving forward. The Brewers were hopeful that Wily Peralta would be the one to lead this pitching staff, but his 2-5 record paired with his 6.99 ERA have not left the team or its fans satisfied. Nelson, though, looks as if he has the stuff to lead this staff into the future.

Nelson leads the pitching staff in nearly every statistic including innings pitched with 64.2, quality starts with 7, and 54 strikeouts. He also has a WHIP of 1.18. Although these stats may be average in terms of the rest of the league, Nelson has shown that he has the potential to grow into a major role on this pitching staff moving forward.

In his most recent start on Tuesday night against the struggling Atlanta Braves, Nelson recorded his seventh quality start of the season. His line for the night was six innings pitched, four hits, one earned run, three walks, and eight strikeouts. The lone earned run came off an RBI triple by Mallex Smith that scored Erick Aybar in the bottom of the fifth. The Brewers went on to win the game 2-1 after a Scooter Gennett single scored Jonathan Villar in the top of the eighth.

Although this Brewers season has been better than many had hoped, the pitching staff has struggled for much of it. With that being said, the starting rotation has surrendered 30 earned runs over the last 14 games, adding a glimmer of hope to a staff that has been anything but impressive thus far. There have been promising moments that this team can develop into a successful ball club, though this team is a long way off from competing for a division crown. Jimmy Nelson has given the fans something to watch moving toward the future, and there is a lot of hope that he can develop into the ace this team so desperately needs.

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