Michael Blazek made some headlines during spring training when he was announced as one of the team’s final cuts. Not only was he optioned down, but he was eventually outrighted off the 40-man roster when the Brewers claimed Nick Franklin. He wasn’t happy about not making the team out of camp, and he made sure people knew about it, blaming the demotion on the team telling him to focus on throwing only fastballs during spring training.
He responded by excelling in Colorado Springs, posting a 3.13 ERA in an extremely tough pitching environment, splitting his time between the bullpen and starting rotation.