Milwaukee Brewers pitcher Brandon Woodruff delivers against the Pittsburgh Pirates on Sept. 6 in Pittsburgh. (AP Photo/Matt Freed, file)

MILWAUKEE (AP) — Milwaukee’s Brandon Woodruff will be ready to start the season on time, a welcome development for a Brewers rotation lacking experience.

The Brewers announced that the two-time All-Star right-hander would start their fifth game of the season, March 31 against the Tampa Bay Rays. Woodruff had spent spring training working his way back after missing the postseason with a lat strain, raising the possibility he might open the year with at least a brief stint on the injured list.

“I felt like personally I was in a good spot,” Woodruff said before the Brewers’ Monday night exhibition game with the Cincinnati Reds at American Family Field. “I was recovering. My pitch count is probably obviously a little less than some of the guys coming out of camp, but I felt like I was recovering. I felt like the stuff was there and coming along. I didn’t feel like I necessarily wanted to go pitch in minor league games, pretty much is the way I felt about it.”

Woodruff’s availability boosts a rotation that will open the season without Quinn Priester, who had a breakthrough season last year with a 13-3 record and 3.32 ERA. Brewers manager Pat Murphy said, “I think you’ll see (Priester) in early May if all goes well” as the right-hander deals with a nerve issue.

Priester had been dealing with an apparent wrist problem for much of the preseason and eventually received a diagnosis indicating it was at least partially related to thoracic outlet syndrome.

That leaves Milwaukee opening with a rotation that’s long on talent but short on veterans beyond the 33-year-old Woodruff, who is back with the Brewers after accepting their $22.025 million qualifying offer during the offseason.

Flame-throwing right-hander Jacob Misiorowski, who made 15 appearances as a rookie last season, will start the season opener Thursday against the Chicago White Sox. Right-handers Chad Patrick and Brandon Sproat will start the final two games of the White Sox series, while lefty Kyle Harrison starts Monday’s series opener with the Rays.

This will be the fifth career start for the 25-year-old Sproat, one of the players acquired in the trade that sent two-time All-Star right-hander Freddy Peralta to the New York Mets. Patrick, 27, went 3-8 with a 3.53 ERA in 27 appearances as a rookie last season. Harrison, who came to Milwaukee in the deal that sent third baseman Caleb Durbin to Boston, has made 42 appearances but is only 23 years old.

That makes the Brewers particularly grateful to have Woodruff’s veteran presence available for the start of the season as they begin their pursuit of a fourth straight NL Central title.

“I think it’s an encouraging sign, right?” Murphy said. “We weren’t thinking that he was going to be on the team early, but the way it was going, it went so well in terms of he feels great, and he feels like he’s ready. And you’ve got to trust the player.”

Woodford acquired

The Brewers boosted their bullpen depth Tuesday by acquiring right-handed pitcher Jake Woodford from the Tampa Bay Rays for minor league right-hander K.C. Hunt.

Milwaukee made room for Woodford on its 40-man roster by transferring outfielder Akil Baddoo to the 60-day injured list.

Woodford, 29, spent last season with the Arizona Diamondbacks and went 0-4 with a 6.44 ERA in 22 relief appearances. He struck out 23 batters in 36 1/3 innings.

He owns a 10-17 career record with a 5.10 ERA in 111 appearances, including 25 starts. The 2015 first-round draft pick pitched for St. Louis from 2020-23 and split the 2024 season between the Chicago White Sox and Pittsburgh Pirates.

“He’s pitched in a number of different roles,” Brewers president of baseball operations Matt Arnold said. “He’s been a veteran in the league for a while, a guy we faced obviously with St. Louis, so we have some history with him. He’s an interesting arm that can play a valuable role in a number of different spots in our bullpen or potentially even at the front of games.”

Woodford had been with Tampa Bay as a non-roster invitee this spring. He posted a 1.23 ERA while working 7 1/3 innings in four Grapefruit League appearances.

His ability to pitch multiple innings appealed to the Brewers.

“Just at a point where we wanted to add some depth, and he’s right-handed,” Arnold said. “I think we’re obviously a little more skewed to the left-hand side. So I feel he’s a really good fit for us.”

Hunt, 25, went 7-9 with a 4.45 ERA in 26 starts last season for Biloxi, the Brewers’ Double-A affiliate. He struck out 122 and walked 43 in 121 1/3 innings.

Baddoo, 27, signed with the Brewers in December. The former Detroit Tigers outfielder has been dealing with a quad strain that is expected to keep him out until June.