Logan Henderson battled through a sore lower back to throw five shutout innings as the Milwaukee Brewers beat the Los Angeles Dodgers 5-1 on May 22 at American Family Field, extending a remarkable run by the team’s young pitchers—while the question of where he
The night Logan Henderson had to win wasn’t just against the Dodgers’ lineup—it was against his own body.
Henderson. a young right-hander for the Milwaukee Brewers. delivered five shutout innings in a 5-1 Brewers victory over the Los Angeles Dodgers on Friday. May 22. at American Family Field. It came with a sore lower back that was “locking up” for parts of his outing. according to manager Pat Murphy. and even when the game tightened early. Henderson kept finding a way to come back.
Murphy called the standard “pretty high” and said the rookie-level readiness he’s seen in Henderson is exactly what makes those starts land. “There’s pretty high standards and they live up to them,” Murphy said. “I’m really proud of Logan in particular, his attitude. It’s just tremendous.”
The start itself started messy in a way that could have knocked the rhythm loose. Henderson opened by walking Shohei Ohtani. Then he recovered—striking out Mookie Betts and Freddie Freeman—to keep the damage minimal. The first inning ended with help from the Brewers’ defense and a quick correction from baseball’s replay system: when Ohtani attempted to steal second base. Henderson threw him out on a terrific tag by Joey Ortiz. and a successful Brewers replay challenge played a major role in closing the inning.
“I never love to start the game off with a free pass but I was happy with the way we were able to bounce back,” Henderson said. “The caught stealing, I wasn’t really sure what was going on with the whole delay, but I was glad he was out.”
Milwaukee took the lead in that same first frame. punctuated by a three-run home run by William Contreras in the bottom of the inning. That capped a four-run first for the Brewers. and Henderson—through a mix of three strikeouts and a pair of groundouts—worked through the early outs needed to face the Dodgers with the lead protected.
By the second inning, the margin was already too big to bargain with. Andrew Vaughn’s run-scoring double in the second extended Milwaukee’s lead to 5-0.
Even with Henderson nursing the tightness in his lower back, he kept pitching like the game was still asking him to do one simple thing: get the next out.
His own words about the back sounded familiar, like something he’d had to work around before. “A little low back tightness,” Henderson said. “I’ve dealt with it before in years past. A little tight mid-game, but feel good about it moving forward.”
The fourth inning brought more pressure. Henderson worked around a leadoff single by Ohtani, navigated one-out traffic that included a Freeman walk drawn and then got through the two-out threat created by a Pages walk drawn when Max Muncy popped out to Brice Turang.
In the fifth. Henderson faced Ohtani’s side of the order again. and a leadoff single by Teoscar Hernández led to nothing for the Dodgers. Henderson finished the night in style—striking out Ohtani on four pitches. with the final pitch described as a nasty changeup swung through by the game’s best player.
Murphy considered moving on to a left-handed option. He had Shane Drohan ready to go at that point, but stuck with Henderson.
“We felt like. ‘OK. he got the strikeout the hitter before. ’ he’s going good and he understood how we wanted to tackle Ohtani. ” Murphy said. “I thought he could still make those pitches, so that was a decision to leave him in. Could have easily gone to Drohan. but felt like he was on a roll there and he made 4-5 pitches in a row.”.
Murphy added that Henderson’s velocity picked up against the hitter before and that the team wanted to attack Ohtani in the same way.
That strikeout came on Henderson’s 85th pitch of the game, a season high for him. The swing-and-miss was his game-high 15th strikeout.
Afterward, Henderson framed it as plain work, not a moment to chase. “Just trying to get the job done, honestly,” he said. “Don’t know how to explain it more than that, other than just trying to dig deep and find a way.”
Through five shutout innings, Henderson improved to 2-1. He didn’t allow a run for just the second time in 10 major league starts, and he struck out seven. He’s also limited opponents to no more than two runs in any of his 10 starts—an accomplishment that makes him the first pitcher since at least 1898 to do that.
William Contreras, his battery mate, pointed to the way Henderson connects pitches in real time. “His pitches are really good. The fastball and changeup work really well together,” Contreras said. “I think he knows what he’s doing out there. He’s very competent and has a plan.”
“Just getting some more experience under his belt, I think he’ll continue to shine.”
The night felt like the latest installment in a season-long run by a Brewers rotation that’s been built around younger arms. Henderson’s outing came as the team leaned into a group highlighted by rotation regulars Jacob Misiorowski and Kyle Harrison. and rounded out by pitchers including Brandon Sproat. starters turned relievers Shane Drohan and Chad Patrick. plus fill-ins Coleman Crow and Robert Gasser.
It has also been a fast. uneven path for Henderson to earn the right to be on the field every fifth day. His major league debut came just over 13 months ago, in a six-inning, one-run, nine-strikeout masterpiece against the A’s. But on April 4, he made a two-inning spot start at Kansas City. After that, he was sent back to Class AAA Nashville until Brandon Woodruff was sidelined by a dead arm.
Henderson returned and delivered an eight-strikeout performance over six innings at Washington on May 3. Since then, he has delivered three straight five-inning starts, with the last two culminating in victories.
His work against a strong New York Yankees lineup on May 10 mattered too—but the Dodgers were a different kind of test. Henderson’s control of that top seven. packed with Shohei Ohtani. Mookie Betts. Freddie Freeman. Kyle Tucker. Andy Pages. Max Muncy and Teoscar Hernández. made the win feel like more than a strong start.
Across five starts this season, Henderson has a 2.74 ERA and a WHIP of 1.04, limiting opposing batters to a collective .214 average. He’s struck out 30 in 23 innings.
Still, the calendar question hangs over everything he’s doing: will he remain in the rotation once Woodruff returns?
Milwaukee is listing its starter as To Be Announced for the series finale against the St. Louis Cardinals on May 27, which would be Henderson’s next turn if the Brewers stay in line.
Murphy made it clear Henderson is part of the team’s present. while also acknowledging the practical reality of options. volume. and rest. “He was a part of it last year; pitched some great games for us,” Murphy said. “I consider him part of this team but any guy with options is going to go down and up based on the volume that we have and rest that’s needed and all that kind of stuff. So, guys go through phases.”.
“He’s already earned it. He earned it last year. He was counted on and part of the mix just like he’s getting his chance to do now.”
Henderson would love to stay in the mix—especially with the Brewers playing a three-game series in Houston. where Henderson’s hometown waits beginning next Friday. “I think we piggyback off each other really well,” Henderson said of the team’s young pitchers. “We have a great staff right now and have for a long time, and it’s just a next-man-up mentality.”.
For now, the immediate goal is smaller than the bigger question hovering over his role. “The goal is to win tonight and it’s not much more than that.”
Logan Henderson Milwaukee Brewers Los Angeles Dodgers American Family Field Pat Murphy Shohei Ohtani William Contreras Jacob Misiorowski Kyle Harrison Brandon Woodruff