Brewers pitching prospect Jimmy Nelson is no longer plagued by the shoulder problems that hindered him in 2012 and is off to a promising start for Double-A Huntsville. Nelson is 2-0 with a 1.25 ERA and .175 opponents' batting average through four starts.
"I think it was actually a blessing in disguise," Nelson said of his shoulder woes the second half of last season to MLB.com. "I learned to pitch when I didn't have my best stuff, and that has helped me. I also used my changeup a lot more, and now I have another good pitch."
Nelson, who is considered the Brewers' eighth-best prospect by MLB.com, has struck out 26 and walked five in 21 2/3 innings. He's allowed only three earned runs.
"I tried to compensate for my sore shoulder and had trouble repeating my delivery," said Nelson, who was 2-4 with a 3.91 ERA in 10 starts for Huntsville last season. "I lost my command. Now everything is working in unison again, and I don't have trouble throwing strikes.