Zerpa: Brewers' Secret Weapon

0:00It's April 5, I'm Cory with the story, and this is Milwaukee Brewer's news today, your AI-powered team report. The Milwaukee Brewer's dominated the regular season last year, but got knocked out early by the Dodgers and the playoffs. This off-season, they shook things up with big trades, sending Freddie Peralta to the Metz and Caleb Durbin to the Red Sox for top prospects. They also flipped outfielder Isaac Collins to the Royals and picked up lefty reliever Angel Zerpa in return. Zerpa flew under the radar after those splashier deals, but he's already turning heads in the Brewer's bullpen. The 26-year-old has made 60 or more appearances in back-to-back seasons and shown for Venezuela in the World Baseball Classic. Experts like Bleacher reports Tim Kelly are calling him the team's best-kept secret. With studs like Abner Urbay and Trevor McGill closing games, Zerpa could slide right in as another lockdown arm, making that pen even tougher. Slowly this season, he's pitched scoreless ball in his first three outings.

1:00His stats pop too, no barrels allowed, an average exit velocity of just 83.2 mph, and top marks in zone contact at 62.5%, plus a hard-hit rate of 25%. If Zerpa keeps chasing more swings outside the zone, he might explode into a national league force, giving the Brewer's the edge they need to go deeper.