Five questions with Marlins rookie pitcher Jeff Brigham

Jeff Brigham is in his second season with the Miami Marlins but is still considered a rookie because he only threw 16.1 innings as a starting pitcher in 2018. He’s a reliever now for the first time of his professional career and has been called up from Triple-A New Orleans four times this season. He played college ball at the University of Washington and came to Miami in a 2015 mid-season trade with the Los Angeles Dodgers. We discussed his experiences leading up to and throughout his rookie season.

5R: What was your first minor league experience like?

JB: The Pioneer League, especially Ogden gave me the full minor league experience. I like to joke around, we had a former Cy Young winner in “Blackjack” McDowell as our manager and some of those towns were tough. It was tough travel, not the best towns. I had a bunk bed with a roommate sleeping below me that entire summer. It was a really special experience. Wouldn’t want to go back and do it but it kind of developed me into the player I am today.

5R: You were on a Rancho Cucamonga Quakes team that won the California League title in 2015 and was loaded with future Major League talent, from Cody Bellinger to Alex Verdugo and Tim Locastro. You were traded to Miami before the Trade Deadline. How did you find out were getting traded?

JB: I got pulled out in the third inning. I think it was on a Tuesday. The trade deadline was Friday. I ended up finding out Thursday afternoon on Twitter, on social media I think and then they called me the next day and say, “Everything you’e seen is true. You’re going over to the Miami Marlins.

5R: What’s the process like for someone to be repeatedly called up and sent back down to Triple-A in a single season?

JB: It’s definitely been a hectic last few months for me. You get called up, they tell you to come up and you pack everything up, call your parents saying you’re coming up and then a couple days later they send you back down. It’s just a lot of traveling, building up a ton of airline miles. I joke a lot with Donnie [Mattingly] about that is the airline is starting to know my name. It’s definitely been an experience. I mean, there’s worst things to do for sure.

5R: This is your first year as a reliever. What is the difference being preparing for this role and being a starting pitcher?

JB: The biggest difference is finding a routine that works. As a starter, you have every set five days, you exactly what you’re gonna do every single day. You’re gonna know how many throws you’re gonna make, when you’re off the mound. As a reliever, it’s kinda more by feel. You got to prepare to pitch every single day. You gotta find a day to get your lifts in, gotta just be ready to pitch. So that’s really been the main difference, just preparing every day to pitch.

5R: This was your first Trade Deadline period while on a big league club. Three players were traded during that day, all of whom were fellow pitchers. How did you experience that?

JB: They definitely came out of the blue, all three of them to be honest. Those were three of my best friends on the team so it was definitely a tough pill to swallow. I am excited for the other guys who got called up with me because of these past couple trades but it definitely was tough to see my friends go.