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In an unfortunate turn of events, rehabbing Brewers right-hander Brandon Woodruff was struck on the right elbow by a line drive during his start for Triple-A Nashville on Tuesday night. This incident marks a potential setback in what has been a long and arduous journey back for Woodruff following shoulder surgery. Woodruff, who last pitched in Major League Baseball in September 2023, left the game after being hit by a 108.2 mph comebacker from Gwinnett's Cade Bunnell.

Initial X-rays taken in Nashville showed no fractures, but Woodruff is set to return to Milwaukee for further examination by the team's medical staff. "I haven't called him yet, but I will get in contact with him because I just watched the video, and hopefully, he is OK," said Freddy Peralta, a longtime teammate of Woodruff, who pitched into the seventh inning in the Brewers' 4-2 loss to the Reds. "It's crazy how things happen sometimes. We have to be grateful that we're here playing the game, and hopefully, he joins us soon."

The 32-year-old Woodruff, who holds the best ERA (3.10) in Brewers' franchise history among pitchers with at least 500 innings, has been striving to return to form since experiencing discomfort in a game in Miami late in the 2023 season. He underwent surgery the following month to repair an issue with the anterior capsule in his right shoulder and missed the entire 2024 season. After resuming his pitching activities during Spring Training, Woodruff encountered additional setbacks, including a right ankle injury in May.

His latest rehab assignment, which was supposed to culminate in an 80-pitch, six-inning outing on Tuesday, could have paved the way for his return to the Brewers' rotation as soon as June 9. However, these plans are now in flux. Brewers assistant GM Matt Kleine conveyed that the path forward would largely depend on the results of the upcoming medical examinations and how Woodruff's elbow heals in the coming days. Should Woodruff be sidelined for over a week, the Brewers might pull him from his current 30-day rehab window and restart it once he is fully ready.

"We really won't know what that timeline looks like until we get past the appointment, get the imaging, and then the reality of the situation is that it's probably going to hurt for a few more days," Kleine mentioned. "So even though the appointment is [Wednesday], we may not know for several more days what a realistic timeline is on this.... Because he's come so far already, the worst thing we can do is try to shortchange the timeline now."

Woodruff's teammates are looking forward to seeing him when the Brewers begin their longest homestand of the season on Friday with a three-game series against the Padres. "The guy's been through some adversity," said Brewers manager Pat Murphy. "This has been a long road back, but let's not forget, he's going to do great things."