Brewers shortstop Joey Ortiz is headed for an MRI on his left hamstring after leaving this afternoon’s game, manager Pat Murphy told reporters (including MLB.com’s Adam McCalvy). The second-year infielder pulled up after running out a ground-ball and immediately favored the back of his left leg. It certainly had the look of a hamstring strain that’d require an injured list stint, though that won’t be official until tomorrow.
Andruw Monasterio finished the game at shortstop. Aside from one early-season appearance from Vinny Capra (who is no longer in the organization), Monasterio is the only player other than Ortiz to start a game at shortstop. He’s the likeliest option to step into an everyday role if Ortiz heads to the IL. A career .243/.318/.336 hitter, Monasterio has only tallied 72 plate appearances in 43 games this season.
The Brewers don’t have any other natural shortstops on the 40-man roster. Calling up Triple-A shortstop Freddy Zamora would require a 40-man move. Oliver Dunn, who is on the 40-man, has gotten some shortstop work in the minors and could be recalled as an emergency option off the bench. It’s unlikely Milwaukee would disrupt the routines of Brice Turang or Caleb Durbin by moving them to shortstop on an everyday basis, but either player could move there as a late-game substitute if the Brewers remove Monasterio for pinch-hitting or injury purposes.
Milwaukee’s win over the Cubs today pushed their lead in the NL Central back to seven games. They’re five and a half games clear of the Phillies for the top seed in the National League. That gives them the cushion to weather an Ortiz absence unless he suffered a significant enough strain to threaten his readiness for the postseason.
On the other side of the equation, Milwaukee has a few players nearing returns. Rhys Hoskins began a rehab assignment at Triple-A Nashville on Tuesday. Hoskins has been sidelined since July 6 with a left thumb sprain. That injury forced the Brewers to call up Andrew Vaughn from Triple-A. They certainly wouldn’t have foreseen Vaughn going on a .320/.386/.578 tear with dramatically improved plate discipline metrics relative to his early-season stint with the White Sox.
Vaughn has mashed his way to an everyday role. Christian Yelich continues to get a lot of designated hitter work. Even if the Brewers felt Yelich could shoulder a bigger workload in left field, Isaac Collins has played far too well to leave the lineup. It leaves Hoskins without a clear path to playing time once he’s ready to return, which could be within the next week or two.
Hoskins may be relegated to part-time first base and DH work. The veteran got out to a great start to the season, hitting .276/.374/.475 through the end of May. He’d slumped to a .170/.269/.330 line in the next five weeks leading up to the injury. The Brewers wouldn’t have considered replacing him with Vaughn despite the slump, but the injury and the latter’s performance changed the calculus.
Robert Gasser has been rehabbing in Triple-A for the past few weeks. The lefty is working back from last June’s elbow surgery. Gasser is closing in on reinstatement after throwing four scoreless innings and building to 52 pitches on Tuesday. He may only need one or two more minor league starts. According to the MLB.com injury tracker, the Brewers are weighing whether to keep him built up as a starter or kick him to the bullpen in anticipation of his likelier postseason role.
Gasser impressed with a 2.57 ERA over his first five big league starts last summer. The Brewers no doubt view him as a long-term starter but have sufficient rotation depth that he’s unlikely to get a starting job this season. Gasser still has a full slate of minor league options, so the Brewers could keep him in Nashville even after he returns from the injured list (though they’ll need to clear a spot for him on the 40-man roster).
Joey Ortiz isn’t replaceable in the Brewers lineup, not only for his defense, he has been hitting the ball well in the nine hole.
Monasterio may not hit much but he is a Brewer through and through. He gloves it, he runs like a gazelle, and he knows what he’s trying to do at the plate. Ortiz didn’t hit much until recently. The Brewers will be fine. Ortiz will be back by the time it matters.
I like your optimism. Let’s hope he doesn’t have to play every day. According to Baseball Savant his sprint speed is 27.7 which places him 216th overall in Major League Baseball. “Gazelle “ is an interesting term to use to describe his running.
I didn’t say cheetah. He is a good athlete. That’s what the Brewers have. He can play Brewer ball. Plus, it’s the BREWERS. They probably have some never before heard of AA, UDFA who is ready to step in and play like prime Omar Vizquel for three months.
Well they always could switch Turang to short, Durbin to second, Collins to third,Yellich to left, Hoskins can DH then keep Vaughn at first.
Collins has a total of 119 innings at third base, 118.2 of which was in the minors. I don’t know how you see that as a viable option.