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Brewers To Place Christian Yelich On Injured List

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4:34 PM: Eric Yardley has been recalled to take Yelich’s roster spot, per the team. As expected, Yelich’s placement on the injured list is retroactive to April 14th, which should make him available to return next weekend.

3:34 PM: After holding Christian Yelich out of game action for the past week with an ailing back, the Brewers will now place their star outfielder on the injured list, per the Athletic’s Will Sammon and others (via Twitter). The corresponding roster move is yet to come.

Yelich has dealt with a back issue throughout his time in Milwaukee, but it’s usually been the type of injury that improves with a few days rest. At this point, if Yelich still isn’t quite ready for action, they may as well use his roster spot to add another potential contributor. Because he hasn’t appeared in a game since April 11th, Yelich will be able to return from the injured list in just a couple of days. Still, in the meantime, the Brewers can bring in another body for the rest of the weekend series. The Brewers head west for a three-game series in San Diego on Monday.

The Brewers once-deep outfield has suffered a couple of injuries this week. Lorenzo Cain was placed on the injured list a couple of days ago, as was second baseman Kolten Wong. Without Cain or Yelich, Jackie Bradley Jr. is the man in center, Avisail Garcia is back in right, with Billy McKinney, Tyrone Taylor, Jace Peterson, and Daniel Robertson capable of piecing together the action in left.

NL Injury Notes: Yelich, Cardinals, Inciarte, Lester

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Although Brewers left fielder Christian Yelich hasn’t appeared in a game since Sunday, the team doesn’t seem overly concerned about his ailing back. Manager Craig Counsell said Yelich began baseball activities Thursday and is “making progress,” per Tom Haudricourt and Todd Rosiak of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. Counsell likened Yelich’s current back ailment to the ones that he dealt with in previous seasons, noting that the former MVP didn’t require an IL stint in those cases and was able to return within a few days.

  • Cardinals center fielder Harrison Bader is 10 to 14 days from being a “full go,” manager Mike Shildt told reporters (including Katie Woo of The Athletic) on Friday. The Cardinals have been without Bader since he suffered a forearm injury in late March, mostly leaving center to Dylan Carlson thus far. Meanwhile, right-hander Miles Mikolas threw a second “aggressive” bullpen and is making favorable progress, according to Shildt. Mikolas didn’t pitch at all last season as he recovered from surgery on his flexor tendon, and he suffered a shoulder injury in the first half of March that has stopped him from taking the mound this year. A healthy Mikolas would be a welcome addition for the Cardinals, whose rotation has begun 2021 in dreadful fashion. Their starters rank last in the majors with a 6.33 ERA.
  • Braves center fielder Ender Inciarte appears ticketed for a trip to the 10-day IL after suffering a strained hamstring Friday, David O’Brien of The Athletic writes. Inciarte would be the second Braves center fielder to hit the IL this week, joining starter Cristian Pache. Behind Inciarte, Guillermo Heredia has the most center field experience of anyone on Atlanta’s roster. Superstar Ronald Acuna Jr. played 100 games there in 2019 and spent the majority of last season there, but the Braves are reluctant to move him out of right field, per O’Brien, who names Phil Ervin and Abraham Almonte as call-up possibilities. Ervin and Almonte aren’t on the Braves’ 40-man roster, which does have an open spot at the moment.
  • Nationals left-hander Jon Lester got through a three-inning, 49-pitch sim game on Friday without any issues, Jessica Camerato of MLB.com relays. Manager Dave Martinez believes Lester would be able to toss up to four innings right now, but the Nationals want to stretch him out further before he joins their rotation. There still isn’t a timetable for his 2021 debut, Martinez added. Multiple health issues have hampered Lester since the Nationals signed him to a one-year, $5MM guarantee in free agency. He underwent surgery to remove his thyroid gland at the beginning of March and has been in COVID-19 protocols for most of this month.

NL Injury Notes: Braves, Myers, Betances, Cain

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The Braves don’t have a timetable yet for injured right-handers Mike Soroka and Chris Martin to return, per David O’Brien of The Athletic. Soroka missed almost all of last season with a torn right Achilles, and as he was working his way back, the Braves had to shut him down because of shoulder inflammation. Martin went on the IL with the same issue on April 10 (retroactive to April 7). Between their injuries and Max Fried’s placement on the IL because of a hamstring strain, the Braves are without three of their most important pitchers.

  • Padres right fielder Wil Myers left their game Tuesday with right knee inflammation and was not in their starting lineup Wednesday. Myers has been dealing with patellar tenonitis, but it’s not believed he’ll miss much time or require surgery, according to Kevin Acee of the San Diego Union-Tribune. Even though Myers has had to play through discomfort, it hasn’t had an obvious effect on his production. On the heels of a massive rebound in 2020, he has begun this year with a torrid .341/.438/.659 line and three home runs in 48 plate appearances.
  • Mets reliever Dellin Betances, on the 10-day IL since April 8 with a right shoulder impingement, is still a ways from returning. Betances hasn’t begun throwing, and he won’t travel with the Mets for their April 16-22 road trip, Anthony DiComo of MLB.com reports. Injuries have been a constant problem over the past few years for Betances, a four-time All-Star who has thrown only 13 1/3 innings dating back to his final season with the Yankees in 2019. The Mets had high hopes for a Betances bounce-back effort when they signed him to a $10.5MM guarantee during the ensuing winter, but he yielded 10 earned runs in 11 2/3 innings in 2020. So far this year, Betances has made one appearance and thrown one inning, in which he allowed an earned run and a walk.
  • The Brewers have placed center fielder Lorenzo Cain on the 10-day IL with a strained left quad and recalled outfielder Tyrone Taylor, the team announced. There’s no word on how much time Cain will miss, but he strained his other quad during the spring and was limited to seven exhibition games as a result. The 35-year-old has gotten off to a slow start this season with a .154/.214/.423 line in 28 plate appearances.

NL Central Notes: Sonny, Hendricks, Kim, Cain

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Here is the latest out of the National League Central:

  • Reds right-hander Sonny Gray will make his 2021 debut Friday or Saturday, manager David Bell told C. Trent Rosecrans of The Athletic and other reporters. The Reds have gone without Gray because of a back injury, depriving them of one of their best starters. Their Gray-less rotation has received quality work across a combined six starts from Wade Miley, Jeff Hoffman and Tyler Mahle. On the other hand, ace Luis Castillo has been surprisingly inconsistent.
  • Cubs righty Kyle Hendricks wasn’t feeling well heading into Tuesday’s start, so the Cubs made him a late scratch against Milwaukee and gave the ball to Alec Mills instead. The team said it scratched Hendricks “out of an abundance of caution,” which is understandable when considering the Cubs’ current health situation. They’ve sent four players to the COVID list this week, and coaches Craig Driver and Chris Young have tested positive for the virus in recent days. [UPDATE: Manager told Gordon Wittenmyer of NBC Sports Chicago and other reporters that Hendricks tested negative. An IL placement is a possibility, though.]
  • Lefty Kwang Hyun Kim will join the Cardinals’ rotation on Saturday in his first appearance of 2021, while righty Daniel Ponce de Leon will move to their bullpen, per Derrick Goold of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch. Kim, who began dealing with back problems last month, was an eminently valuable part of the Cardinals’ pitching staff as a rookie in 2020. Across eight appearances (seven starts) and 39 innings, Kim notched a miserly 1.62 ERA. Some of his other numbers weren’t nearly as impressive (examples: 7.8 K-BB percentage, 5.00 SIERA), but he helped his cause by tamping down hard contact and keeping the ball on the ground at a 50 percent clip.
  • Brewers center fielder Lorenzo Cain exited their game versus Chicago with “left quad discomfort,” Adam McCalvy of MLB.com tweets. The Brewers shifted Jackie Bradley Jr. to center and brought in Billy McKinney to handle left when Cain departed. Cain also dealt with a quad issue (on his right side) in spring training, but that didn’t prevent him from debuting on time this season. It remains to be seen whether this will cost him any time.

Christian Yelich, Travis Shaw Day-To-Day After Leaving Brewers’ Game

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4:40 pm: It doesn’t seem there’s much cause for concern. Manager Craig Counsell says Yelich is day-to-day with lower back tightness (via Andrew Wagner of the Wisconsin State Journal). Third baseman Travis Shaw is also day-to-day after leaving the game with a right shin contusion. It’s possible both players are back in the lineup for tomorrow’s contest against the Cubs.

2:34 pm: Brewers star outfielder Christian Yelich left this afternoon’s game against the Cardinals in the second inning, Tom Haudricourt of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel was among those to note (Twitter link). He’s dealing with back soreness, per Adam McCalvy of MLB.com (via Twitter).

Jackie Bradley Jr. replaced Yelich in left field. Bradley, Lorenzo Cain and Avisaíl García would make up the Brewers outfield on most days if Yelich is forced to miss any time, with Billy McKinney on hand as depth. Of course, there’s no indication at this point Yelich’s removal was anything more than due caution.

The 2019 National League MVP, Yelich had a down year (by his lofty standards) during the shortened 2020 season. He’s off to a rather bizarre start in 2021. Yelich already has ten hits and six walks over his first 37 plate appearances, but he’s also struck out twelve times and has yet to hit a home run.

Brewers Place Kolten Wong On 10-Day IL

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2:10PM: Wong’s injury may be “on the minor side,” manager Craig Counsell told reporters (including Tom Haudricourt of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel).  A firmer timeline will be established after Wong undergoes more treatment, but the team is hopeful he won’t be out of action for much beyond the 10-day minimum.

10:28AM: The Brewers have officially announced the moves, placing Wong on the 10-day IL with a left oblique strain.  Peterson’s minor league contract was selected, and to create a 40-man roster spot, righty Bobby Wahl was moved to the 60-day injured list.

10:03AM: The Brewers are placing second baseman Kolten Wong on the 10-day injured list due to an oblique injury, FanSided’s Robert Murray writes.  Utilityman Jace Peterson will be called up to take Wong’s spot on the active roster.

An IL stint seemed likely for Wong considering that he missed Wednesday’s game and then was forced into an early exit from Thursday’s game due to the same oblique problem.  No timetable is yet known for Wong’s return, as oblique injuries can sometimes require several weeks of recovery time based on the severity of the issue.

Even a shorter-term absence is an unfortunate outcome for both Wong and the Brewers, as the former Gold Glover just joined the team on a two-year, $18MM free agent contract during the offseason.  Wong’s injury also emerged just two days after Milwaukee traded shortstop Orlando Arcia to the Braves, so the Brewers are now even more short-handed in the infield.

The left-handed hitting Peterson and the right-handed hitting Daniel Robertson could form a second base platoon while Wong is out of action, with Travis Shaw and Luis Urias remaining as the everyday options at third base and shortstop, respectively.  Keston Hiura could also see some time at his old second base position, if the Brewers wanted to move him away from first base and give Daniel Vogelbach some playing time.  Dee Strange-Gordon just recently signed to a minor league deal for additional depth (perhaps essentially as Arcia’s replacement) and could see some time with the big league team in relatively short order depending on how the Brewers juggle the roster.

NL Injury Notes: Wong, Akiyama, Goldy, Davis

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Brewers second baseman Kolten Wong departed the team’s game against the Cardinals on Thursday after re-aggravating his left oblique, manager Craig Counsell told Andrew Wagner of the Wisconsin State Journal and other reporters. It’s the same issue that kept Wong from playing Wednesday, and Counsell said (via Tom Haudricourt of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel) there’s a “distinct possibility” that he’ll require a trip to the injured list. Wong, previously with St. Louis, joined the Brewers on a two-year, $18MM contract during the offseason. If he does have to miss time shortly into his Brewers tenure, it would be another blow to the middle infield depth of a team that traded Orlando Arcia to Atlanta earlier this week. The Brewers did add veteran Dee Strange-Gordon on a minor league contract Thursday, though Daniel Robertson – who replaced Wong when he exited – would be the favorite to handle most of the reps at the keystone.

  • The Reds are planning to have Shogo Akiyama back with the team in early-to-mid May, C. Trent Rosecrans of The Athletic reports (via Twitter). Akiyama started slowly for the Red last season, but he was able to adjust and post a strong second half. At least so far, however, the Reds have managed just fine without him. Tyler Naquin has helped fill the void with a massive start to the season. With Nick Senzel, Jesse Winker, Nick Castellanos, and Aristides Aquino on the roster, the Reds are in no real hurry to upset the apple cart, so to speak.
  • Paul Goldschmidt was scratched from today’s Cardinals game because of lower back tightness, per MLB.com’s Zachary Silver (via Twitter). The move was precautionary, so presumably the Cardinals don’t expect this to lead to an IL placement. Manager Mike Shildt said after the game that Goldschmidt’s day to day, and the Cardinals will know more about his status Friday, Jeff Jones of the Belleville News tweets.
  • The Mets received some good news on J.D. Davis. X-rays came back negative on his bruised left hand, Tim Healey of Newsday relays (via Twitter). Davis does not appear to be headed to the injured list, though he remained out of the lineup for the Mets’ home opener today. Jonathan Villar took his place at the hot corner. Villar got the start at third base today for the first time since 2016. Luis Guillorme would also be in line to see a bump in playing time while Davis is on the shelf. It’s not clear, however, how much time Davis will miss.

Brewers Select Brad Boxberger

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The Brewers announced Tuesday that they’ve selected the contract of veteran right-hander Brad Boxberger. He’ll join the club for their matchup against the Cubs and take the recently traded Orlando Arcia’s spot on the active roster. Righty Justin Topa was transferred to the 60-day injured list to open a spot on the 40-man roster.

Boxberger, 32, is a veteran of nine big league seasons who has ample experience as both a closer and setup man. He spent the 2020 season setting up for Brandon Kintzler in Miami, pitching to a 3.00 ERA with a 22.8 percent strikeout rate and 10.1 percent walk rate. It’s been awhile since his peak at this point, but Boxberger posted a 2.94 ERA through his first 177 1/3 MLB frames from 2012-15 and led the American League with 41 saves for the 2015 Rays.

In the five seasons since that stretch, Boxberger’s entire body of work has been solid enough, but he’s lacked consistency on a year-over-year basis. He’ll look to continue last year’s success while hopefully putting a rocky Spring Training effort behind him; in nine spring frames with the Brewers, Boxberger was tagged for eight earned runs on 10 hits, although his 14-to-1 K/BB ratio was certainly more encouraging.

Brewers Trade Orlando Arcia To Braves

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The Brewers and Braves have lined up on a rare, early-season trade involving three players on the teams’ respective 40-man rosters. The Brewers are sending infielder Orlando Arcia to the Braves in return for right-handed relievers Patrick Weigel and Chad Sobotka, per announcements from both teams. Weigel and Sobotka will report to the Brewers’ alternate training site.

While it’s a bit surprising to see a trade of any note taking place so early in the season, Arcia’s role with the Brewers has diminished in recent years. The hope at one point was that he’d be the long-term answer at short, but Luis Urias now looks to be the preferred option at that position for the Brew Crew. Arcia has also seen some time at third base this year, but Travis Shaw made the Brewers’ Opening Day roster and is expected to serve as the primary option at the hot corner.

Arcia is off to a 1-for-11 start to his 2021 season, but he turned in perhaps the best showing of his career last summer when he slashed .260/.317/.416 through 189 plate appearances. That said, it’s somewhat disappointing for that output to represent a career-best showing for Arcia, given that he once ranked among baseball’s top 10 overall prospects at both Baseball America and MLB.com. Arcia’s glove always gave him a decent floor, but his bat simply hasn’t come around as hoped. Through 1876 plate appearances at the big league level, he’s managed just a .244/.293/.364 batting line with 42 homers and 39 steals.

The Braves obviously don’t have a need for an everyday shortstop — Dansby Swanson has the position locked down — but Arcia gives them a utility option with a solid glove. He has 4250 career innings at shortstop, so it’s not a surprise that Atlanta would be comfortable sliding him over to either second base or third base.

Ehire Adrianza had been filling that role with the club, although there’s some uncertainty surrounding his status at the moment. Adrianza left the club to tend to a personal matter recently, and he was reportedly in the process of going through intake testing to return to the club. David O’Brien of The Athletic tweets that Adrianza is expected to return to the club by this weekend.

Arcia joins Adrianza, Johan Camargo and Pablo Sandoval as utility options off the bench for skipper Brian Snitker, although the Braves can’t carry that many backup infielders simultaneously. Both Arcia and Camargo have a minor league option remaining. Arcia is the more expensive of the two, with a $2MM salary to Camargo’s $1.36MM, and it would stand to reason that if the Braves are giving up some pitching to acquire him, he’d get the nod. At some point, the acquisition of Arcia could place the roster spot of one of the other backup infielders in jeopardy.

Depending on how things play out for Arcia in Atlanta, he could be an option for them not only in 2021 but in 2022. He currently has four-plus years of big league service, which means he’ll be controllable through the 2022 season via arbitration.

In exchange for Arcia, the Brewers will pick up a pair of optionable relievers — one of whom once rated as one of the better arms in a pitching-rich Braves system. The 26-year-old Weigel ranked ninth among Braves farmhands on Baseball America’s list back in 2017 and still checked in 14th this past offseason.

His career has been slowed by 2018 Tommy John surgery, but Weigel’s 2019 return from that procedure created some optimism. In 79 innings split between Double-A and Triple-A, the righty worked to a 2.73 ERA — albeit with less-encouraging strikeout and walk rates (21.6 percent and 12.5 percent, respectively). Weigel pitched in just one game with Atlanta last year, allowing a pair of runs in two-thirds of an inning. That’s his lone MLB appearance to date.

Sobotka, 27, has displayed a knack for missing bats but has also battled control issues in parts of three seasons with the Braves. The righty boasts a fastball that averages better than 96 mph and a career 28.8 percent strikeout rate through 47 big league innings, but he’s also walked 14.2 percent of his opponents and plunked three more.

The trade gives the Brewers some flexibility on the pitching staff in a season where most teams figure to need it more than ever before, but it also closes the book on one of the organization’s most promising farmhands in recent memory. They’ll now turn the reins over to Urias, a former top prospect himself, in hopes of better results. While Urias himself hasn’t had any real big league success yet, he’s more than three years younger than Arcia and has a vastly better track record in Triple-A, where he’s put together a .305/.403/.511 line in 867 plate appearances.

MLB Network’s Jon Heyman first reported that the Brewers were in talks to trade Arcia. FanSided’s Robert Murray reported that a deal with an unknown club had been reached. The Athletic’s Ken Rosenthal reported that the Braves were acquiring Arcia, and MLB.com’s Mark Bowman reported that Weigel and Sobotka were headed to the Brewers.

Brewers Outright Ray Black

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The Brewers have outrighted right-hander Ray Black off their 40-man roster, the team announced.  Black has cleared waivers and will report to the team’s alternate training site.

Black has been bothered by elbow inflammation for much of the spring, which cost him a chance at winning a job in Milwaukee’s Opening Day bullpen.  Since Black is out of minor league options, a trip through the waiver wire was necessary for the Brewers to remove him from the 40-man.

Injuries have been a recurring problem for Black, beginning with a shoulder surgery that delayed the start of his pro career for almost two years after being drafted by the Giants as a seventh-rounder in 2011.  A strained right rotator cuff kept Black on the injured list for much of 2020, and he appeared in only three games for the Brew Crew last season.

The hard-throwing righty has a strong 30.2% strikeout rate over his 42 1/3 career MLB innings, but also a 5.53 ERA and a very subpar 12.3% walk rate.  Milwaukee acquired Black as part of the Drew Pomeranz/Mauricio Dubon trade with the Giants in 2019.

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