For anyone who has followed the career of Milwaukee Brewers starting pitcher Brandon Woodruff, they know that injuries have been a major part of his story.

Woodruff has just not been able to stay healthy. That's been a big bugaboo of his MLB career, even dating back to his time in college ball and in the minors.

But Woodruff remains committed to performing at a big-league level. No matter what the setback, no matter what the heartbreak, he shows a resiliency that is worthy of a lot of respect.

When MLB writer Tyler Kepner of The Athletic penned a lengthy article about Woodruff, there are a couple of pieces to his story that fans might not know.

For instance, Woodruff's brother Blake died in an ATV accident back in 2016. The Brewers, according to Kepner, told Brandon to take time off. As much as he needed. But a week later, Brandon was back pitching again. 

Of course, Woodruff's injuries have proven tough for him and the ballclub. There's even a chance that the Brewers would have gotten into the World Series if a healthy Woodruff had been around for the postseason push...instead of sitting on the sidelines.

Brewers scout Scott Nichols has been following Woodruff's path from Mississippi State and has had quite a history intertwined with Woodruff.

“We just got lucky,” Nichols told Kepner. “Everybody backed off of him because of the year he had. I had seen him in high school, too — great kid — but Bruce Seid was our scouting director, and I had to beg him to take him in the 11th round.”

The Brewers have made it to postseason play in the past three seasons. But they have not been able to snag a National League pennant, an alluring thing that has remained out of their grasp. Kepner pointed out that Milwaukee might have been able to get one in those three seasons if a healthy Woodruff had been able to pitch.

“Yeah, probably not super healthy to play the ‘what if?’ game for all of us,” Brewers general manager Matt Arnold said. “Anytime you lose a guy like that right before the playoffs, it’s tough, and I know it was emotional for him and certainly for all of us.

"He’s been such a key person for us for a lot of years," Arnold said. "Having that guy back and healthy with a full, normal offseason, I know he’s really excited about it. We all are.”

If Woodruff can stay healthy this season, then the Brewers might find themselves back in the postseason. Hopefully, Woodruff can play a role in getting that elusive NL pennant flying above American Family Field in Milwaukee.

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