Brewers Place Garrett Mitchell On IL With Shoulder Injury

The Brewers announced that they have placed outfielder Garrett Mitchell on the 10-day injured list with a left shoulder subluxation. Fellow outfielder Blake Perkins has been recalled to take his place on the active roster.

Mitchell, 24, appeared to injure himself while sliding into third base during the 10th inning of last night’s game. He initially stayed in the game but then was removed after making a throw in the bottom of that frame. It’s unclear how long he’ll now be out but he tells reporters, including Todd Rosiak of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, that he will get an MRI tomorrow. The results of that imaging will hopefully shed some light on what lies ahead for him.

In the meantime, he’ll miss at least a week and a bit, slowing down a nice start to his career. Between his debut last year and the start to this season, he’s played in 44 major league games so far. Though he’s struck out in 40% of his plate appearances to this point, he also has five home runs, nine stolen bases and a .286/.341/.462 batting line for a 121 wRC+.

This leaves the Brewers down two outfielders, as Tyrone Taylor has been on the IL all year due to a sprained elbow. Rosiak relays that Taylor will soon begin a rehab assignment, but he’ll probably need a decent amount of playing time there since he missed Spring Training. Prospect Sal Frelick wasn’t an option either, with Curt Hogg of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel relaying that he’s out of action in the minors due to a thumb injury. He’s also not on the 40-man roster and would have required a corresponding move to be added, but it seems the injury has made that a moot point.

Those circumstances have aligned to get Blake Perkins to the big leagues for the first time. The 26-year-old has been toiling away in the minors since being drafted back in 2015, spending time in the systems of the Nationals, Royals and Yankees. With the Yanks last year, he walked in 13.6% of his plate appearances between Double-A and Triple-A. He finished the year with a combined batting line of .246/.357/.456 and a 120 wRC+. He didn’t get a roster spot and became a free agent at season’s end, with the Brewers then signing him to a major league deal. That gave him a 40-man roster spot for the first time in his career, but he was still able to be optioned to the minors, having hit .292/.370/.417 in 13 Triple-A games so far in 2023. He’ll be making his major league debut as soon as he gets into a game.

Without Mitchell, the Brewers will have an outfield mix consisting of Christian Yelich in left and Joey Wiemer likely moving over from right to cover center. Right field could then go to Brian Anderson, who has been playing third base to cover for the injured Luis Urías. That could mean Mike Brosseau gets more time at the hot corner or maybe Owen Miller gets some time in right. Perkins is also capable of playing any of the three outfield spots, allowing him to factor in here and have the other pieces shuffled around as needed.