Credit to: iuhoosiers.com
SAN FRANCISCO – Former shutdown Indiana reliever Craig Yoho lived out childhood dreams on Monday (April 21) evening as he made his Major League Baseball debut for the Milwaukee Brewers in a 5-2 loss to the San Francisco Giants at Oracle Park.
The Fishers, Indiana native pitched the eighth inning on Monday evening and struck out the first batter that he faced in the big leagues. The highly-touted Brewers prospect had a 0.00 earned run average in the minor leagues to begin 2025 before Milwaukee gave him the call to the show.
Yoho is the 37th former IU player to make an appearance in the MLB. He is the first to be both recruited and coached by current head coach Jeff Mercer. Since IU’s magical run to the College World Series in 2013, 15 different IU players have debuted in the big leagues. Yoho had one of the fastest rises through the minor leagues, reaching the bullpen for the Brewers in under two years from being drafted.
The last nine big league debuts for former IU players have come on the mound. The last position player to reach the MLB was Sam Travis (May 24, 2017). That could change soon as IU looks for its next professional player in the batter’s box. Matt Gorski (Pirates), Matt Lloyd (Cardinals) and Grant Richardson (Yankees) are all playing in Triple-A and could be on the verge of breaking through soon.
Last 5 MLB Debuts – Former Indiana Players
• Craig Yoho (Brewers) – April 21, 2025 vs. Giants
• Tanner Gordon (Rockies) – July 7, 2024 vs. Royals
• Andrew Saalfrank (Diamondbacks) – September 5th, 2023 vs. Rockies
• Tim Herrin (Guardians) – April 2, 2023 vs. Mariners
• Scott Effross (Cubs) – August 29, 2021 vs. White Sox
