GM David Stearns said Friday that the Brewers are still evaluating whether to use Hader as a starter or reliever in 2018, the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reports.

EDGE Analysis

One thing Stearns is confident about is that Hader "is going to be put in a position to accumulate innings," whether that be as a starter or a multi-inning reliever, which is no surprise given Hader's arm talent. While the Brewers will be looking to maximize Hader's innings, and he was a highly-regarded starting pitcher prospect just an offseason ago, he did throw only 99.2 total innings in 2017 across all levels, so he would inevitably wind up in the bullpen at some point even if he heads into the season as a starter. With that in mind, the Brewers must weigh if it's worth even trying Hader in the rotation, especially when considering just how dominant (12.84 K/9, .156 BAA) he was working in relief last year. With Hader facing a theoretical innings limit as a starter and not in the mix for saves as a reliever, he will likely be only a fringe option in standard league formats. However, even as a full-time reliever he will stand a good chance to hit 100 strikeouts while providing quality ratios, so he can still provide some sort of value in any role for fantasy owners and the Brewers alike.