Medford's Josh Knoth in middle of restart with Brewers' High-A affiliate after Tommy John surgery

Josh Knoth won't turn 21 until Aug. 10.

Given all that his first three years in professional baseball brought him, a reminder of that never hurts.

“I got to remind myself [of] that sometimes when I'm going through a little struggle,” the Medford native told Newsday in a phone interview Thursday. “I'm still young. I got time.”

Knoth, a 6-1 righthander out of Patchogue-Medford High School, was drafted by the Brewers in the first round (No. 33 overall) in 2023, a month and a day before his 18th birthday. He’s amid his first season back with the organization since undergoing Tommy John surgery in January 2025, and he’s been with the High-A Wisconsin Timber Rattlers since May 21.

As he inches closer to getting to “100% back” — he’s been told it can take 18 to 20 months — Knoth is adjusting well to being back in the fold.

“It's going great, man,” said Knoth, who at Patchogue-Medford was named the 2023 Newsday Player of the Year and  was a two-time Carl Yastrzemski Award winner as Suffolk’s most outstanding player.

“I'm feeling good. Everything's lining up well. I'm getting my innings back, which is awesome. Being out for a year and a half isn't easy, grinding in Arizona and rehab. But it's just really awesome to be out here with all the guys again.”

Knoth, the Brewers’ No. 21 prospect, according to MLB Pipeline, was named the organization’s minor-league pitcher of the month for June. He went 2-0 with a 3.74 ERA in five starts last month — his first full month back —  struck out 20 and walked five in 21 2/3 innings.

A rocky last two starts brought his season ERA to 5.23 in 43 innings, but it’s all part of the ups and downs of pro ball.

“You kind of learn really quick that that's just a part of the game,” he said. “It's going to happen. You can't beat yourself up too much about it.”

Knoth suffered his injury in late August in 2024 with Single-A Carolina. He was nearing the end of his season, already with 84 1/3 innings under his belt, and felt the injury occur on one pitch, knowing right away what it was.

“It's a little different for everybody, but for me it was like fire going down my arm,” he said.

The surgery was performed the following January, and Knoth said he got “the full repair with the internal brace” — the UCL reconstruction that is becoming more prevalent with injured pitchers — and the surgeons “took my palmaris [muscle] out of my wrist.”

Then came the start of a lengthy road back to the mound.

“The first six weeks is locked up in a brace, and every two weeks, you move it down so you straighten your arm a little more,” he said. “And then from there, the first six months is no throw, and you just strengthen the shoulder so when you come back, it's used to moving again. So keep that strength. And then after six months is when you start throwing.

“It's a really long process, especially in the Arizona summer.”

Yes, the Arizona summer.

Knoth rehabbed at American Family Fields of Phoenix, the home of Brewers spring training and their rookie-level affiliate. He started throwing last July, recalling days when “it was like 120 degrees.”

He added distance every two weeks, going from 60 feet to 75 to 90 to 105 to 120. After that came the bullpen phase, in which he had to throw about 20 bullpen sessions before he could face live batters. He faced live hitters three times before finally getting into a rehab game with the rookie-level Brewers on May 2. After three rehab appearances, he was back at High-A Wisconsin, where he’s still building his workload.

While not all Statcast metrics are available in High-A, they were in Arizona. And in a May 8 rehab start, the metrics on his curveball were staggering.

Knoth threw only four curveballs that day, not a large sample size, but averaged 3,422 rotations per minute (RPM) and hit 3,518 RPMs. For reference, Mets rookie Nolan McLean leads MLB this season with an average curveball spin of 3,341 RPMs and a high of 3,599 RPMs.

“My dad showed me my curveball grip when I was 12, and I've had the same one,” Knoth said. “I have not done anything different than just throw it as hard as I can every single time, and I just happen to spin.”

Patchogue-Medford coach Anthony Frascogna said in 2023 that Knoth had “had major-league spin rate and movement,” and that clearly seems to be the case. Knoth mentioned that his “really small hands” could be the difference on his curve, potentially adding more grip.

Although the curveball is “still a weapon,” it’s been a “little up and down” since his surgery. He’s focusing more on his “bullet” slider at 90 to 92 mph, his sweeper with a new grip, his changeup that he is throwing a lot more and — of course — his four-seam fastball, which has averaged over 95.0 mph and hit 97.8 mph, according to Brewers Player Development.

Knoth described himself as someone who is “just trying to put them away with my best stuff and see what happens. Sometimes they put good swings on it and sometimes I make them look a little silly.”

What’s next for him? MLB Pipeline says his “upside remains in the middle of a future Milwaukee rotation.” For now, he’s just taking it all in.

“A year and a half in rehab is not fun,” he said. “I'm just so happy to be out here with all the guys, all the coaching staff that's helping me get better every day. I'm honestly just trying to stay healthy and just enjoy my time here.”