Gallardo had a taste of his future status on the team late in 2012, following the trade of Zack Grienke and the loss of Randy Wolf. Putting-up an impressive eight wins in his final nine appearances of that season, the Mexican native brought the Brewers back within striking distance of the Wildcard race. This effort impressed the Brewers staff enough to entrust him with the top spot in the rotation this year.
It can be said that it was easy to put Gallardo atop the rotation, with his extensive experience as a starter. Throwing nearly 3500 pitches last season; he topped the National League in that category, and was second to just the Mets R.A. Dickey in quality starts throughout the league.
Despite that experience, some critics have questioned the team’s decision to put so much faith in just a single starting ace. With 148 starts in his career, Gallardo bests the Brewers second-most experienced starter, Chris Narveson. The team’s second-most talented starter, and the only other lock for a spot in the rotation according to Roenicke, is Marco Estrada. Estrada has just thirty-two starts under his belt. Beyond that, the Brewers three other contenders, Wily Peralta, Mike Fiers, and Mark Rodgers have only thirty-six starts in the majors between them.
Brewers general manager Doug Melvin states that every one of those starters has the full confidence of the Brewers staff going into camp. Citing an encouraging final few months of 2012, Melvin told reporters that his squad would be ready to compete come April.
Adding credence to the general manager’s words was the above-average outings put up by Gallardo and crew last season. While Gallardo’s performances speak for themselves, Peralta, Fiers, Estrada, and Rodgers combined for winning records in 2012.
