One of the most recent bits of news to come from the dominant Milwaukee Brewers pitching staff is certainly not great, but it's all about perspective. Right-handed pitcher J.B. Bukauskas will miss the entire 2025 season after undergoing lat surgery. The recovery time for the procedure is at least nine months, and this is just the latest injury-related setback for the 28-year-old.

“It sounds weird but I’m excited,” said Bukauskas, via Todd Rosiak of USA Today. “I can see the light at the end of the tunnel and finally get it fixed.”

Bukauskas missed the whole 2022 season with a Teres major muscle strain, and he also missed time in 2023 with a cervical strain. In mid-April of 2024, the Brewers placed Bukauskas on the injured list with a right lat strain that ultimately shelved him for the rest of the season.

The Houston Astros drafted Bukauskas out of the University of North Carolina in the first round of the 2017 MLB Draft. Bukauskas made his Major League debut with the Arizona Diamondbacks in 2021. The right-hander had a cup of coffee with the Seattle Mariners in 2023 before joining Milwaukee.

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Across his 33 relief appearances in the big leagues, scattered over three seasons with as many clubs, the Ashburn, VA native logged 30 innings with a 4.74 FIP and 27 strikeouts. The Brewers used Bukauskas in six games in 2024 before his lat injury flared up.

The Brewers' starting rotation is pretty solid overall. Headlined by Brewers Opening Day starter Freddy Peralta, the rotation also features Tobias Myers, Nestor Cortes, Aaron Civale, and Aaron Ashby.

Milwaukee has tweaked their bullpen significantly over the winter. The Brewers traded closer Devin Williams to the New York Yankees in one of the biggest trades of the offseason. Lefty Tyler Alexander signed with the club as well. Bukauskas would likely have gotten some work at the big-league level this season, considering the team's altered bullpen.