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Brewers Select Luke Barker, Option Ethan Small To Triple-A

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The Brewers have made some transactions in between games of today’s doubleheader with the Cubs.  Left-hander Ethan Small (the starter in the first game) was optioned to Triple-A, while right-hander Luke Barker had his contract selected.  Righty Justin Topa was moved to the 60-day injured list to make room for Barker on the 40-man roster.

Small allowed two runs on four hits and four walks over 2 2/3 innings in Game One, as Milwaukee earned a 7-6 win over Chicago.  It was Small’s first career MLB game, and he got the call to fill the spot left in the rotation by Brandon Woodruff’s ankle injury.  While not a stellar debut, Small could potentially still be in the running for future starts depending on how long Woodruff is out, and Small’s demotion could just be so the Brewers can free up a roster space while they figure out their next step.

From one Major League debut to another, as the 30-year-old Barker has made it to the Show after being undrafted out of Chico College.  A season of indy ball in 2016 led to a contract with the Brewers, and Barker has a 2.36 ERA, 27.48% strikeout rate, and 6.33% walk rate over 255 1/3 relief innings in Milwaukee’s farm system.  The Brewers have shown a knack for turning unheralded pitchers into viable relievers at the big league level, so it wouldn’t be a surprise if Barker is the latest hurler to come out of seemingly nowhere to help out the relief corps.

Topa was one of those pitchers himself in 2020, as the former 17th-rounder tossed some important innings for the Brewers in the regular season and in the playoffs.  However, Topa has been plagued by elbow problems ever since, and threw only 18 totals innings in the majors and minors in 2021.  The right-hander had recently started facing live batters, and since the clock on the 60-day IL placement begins when Topa was first placed on the shorter IL at the start of the season, he wasn’t going to be back by the first week of June anyway.

Brewers To Promote Ethan Small

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May 30: The Brewers announced the selection of Small’s contract. The 40-man roster had a couple of vacancies, meaning no corresponding move was required in that regard. As for the active roster, Mark Mathias was optioned but then designated as the team’s 27th man for today’s doubleheader.

May 29: The Brewers are set to call up left-hander Ethan Small, ESPN.com’s Jeff Passan reports (Twitter link).  It is the first big league promotion for Small, the 28th overall pick in the 2019 draft.  Small isn’t on the Brewers’ 40-man roster, so multiple other moves will be forthcoming to create a spot for Small before his official call-up.

Now that Aaron Ashby has lost his prospect status, Small is widely considered to be the best pitching prospect in Milwaukee’s farm system — MLB Pipeline ranks Small as the Brewers’ seventh-best minor leaguer overall, while Baseball America ranks him ninth.  Both outlets are particularly fond of Small’s changeup, a 60-grade pitch that nicely complements his lower-velocity (low 90s) but high-spin fastball.  Beyond these two plus offerings, however, Small doesn’t have a primary third pitch, as his curveball and slider are nothing special and thus not prominent parts of his arsenal.

Between the lack of a third pitch and some control problems, it remains an open question about whether Small can make it as a starting pitcher or if the bullpen is his ultimate destination.  That said, Small’s bottom-line results in his brief pro career have been impressive, as he has a 1.78 ERA and 31.95% strikeout rate over 136 2/3 innings in the minors, starting all 33 of his appearances.

This includes a 1.88 ERA over 38 1/3 innings at Triple-A Nashville this year, which was enough to convince the Brew Crew that Small was ready for the majors.  With a doubleheader coming up tomorrow against the Cubs, Small might receive just the one spot start before heading back to Nashville, though Brandon Woodruff is dealing with a bad ankle.

If Woodruff has to miss his next outing or has to be placed on the injured list, it could provide Small with a longer opportunity to show that he can do against MLB hitters.  Since Freddy Peralta is also going to be missing a big piece of the 2022 campaign, Small might now take over that “sixth starter” depth role, since Ashby has moved into the rotation.

NL Central Notes: Minor, Woodruff, Suzuki, Miley, O’Neill

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Mike Minor is finally set for his 2022 debut, as Reds manager David Bell told reporters that the veteran southpaw is scheduled to start Cincinnati’s game on Friday against the Nationals.  Acquired in a trade with the Royals in March, Minor developed some shoulder issues during Spring Training and then had a setback in his rehab process in April.  However, with four outings completed in his rehab assignment, Minor is ready to take the hill and participate in what will be his 11th Major League season.

More injury updates from around the NL Central…

  • Brandon Woodruff left Friday’s game prior to the fifth inning due to right ankle irritation, though both Woodruff and Brewers manager Craig Counsell told reporters (including Todd Rosiak of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel) that the problem may not be serious enough to keep the right-hander from making his next start on Wednesday.  With Freddy Peralta already on the injured list and the rotation further stretched by a doubleheader on Monday, losing Woodruff for even one outing would be a setback for the Brewers, though the club obviously isn’t going to risk pushing the right-hander if he isn’t ready.
  • Cubs outfielder Seiya Suzuki suffered a sprained left ring finger in Thursday’s game, which kept him out of the lineup yesterday.  It isn’t yet clear whether or not Suzuki will require a visit to the 10-day IL, as Suzuki indicated to reporters (including NBC Sports’ Gordon Wittenmyer) that his finger was feeling only a little better.  Suzuki has a solid .245/.344/.432 slash line in his first 163 MLB plate appearances, though he has cooled off considerably after a great start.
  • The Cubs are also monitoring Wade Miley, whose start yesterday was scratched due to shoulder soreness.  There is some hope Miley will be able to start one of the games in Monday’s doubleheader, but that will depend on how he fares after a long-toss session today.  Miley has only made three starts this season, as some elbow inflammation arose during Spring Training and delayed his Chicago debut until May 10.
  • Tyler O’Neill received a cortisone shot in his right shoulder after additional testing revealed some fluid buildup, the Cardinals outfielder told reporters (including Jeff Jones of The Belleville News-Democrat).  O’Neill has been on the 10-day IL since May 20 due to a shoulder impingement, and after some rest, he hopes to begin a rehab assignment sometime this week.  After what appeared to be a breakout 2021 season, O’Neill has slumped out of the gate this year, slashing just .195/.256/.297 over 133 plate appearances.

Rehab Notes: Adames, Jimenez, Giles

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Willy Adames is on his way to begin a rehab assignment, per Todd Rosiak of the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel. The Brewers shortstop has been out since May 16th with a high ankle sprain, and it’ll take a couple of rehab starts before he’s ready to rejoin the club. He won’t join the team in Chicago for their series against the Cubs, but he could be ready by Thursday, when the Brewers come home to face the Padres. Adames, 26, has been a key piece for the Brewers since coming over from Tampa Bay. While he’s been out, it’s been Luis Urias sliding over from his regular spot at the hot corner, while Jace Peterson and Mike Brosseau have worked out a platoon at third. In other recovery news…

  • Eloy Jimenez got just two at-bats in his first rehab assignment before leaving the game with right leg soreness. The White Sox slugger is day-to-day, per the team. Jimenez was seemingly making a quick recovery from a torn right hamstring, but the good vibes may have been too good to be true. Jimenez has been out for only a month for an injury that was projected to require a six-to-eight week layoff.
  • Ken Giles began his rehab assignment in Tacoma today, per the Rainiers Director of Media Relations Paul Braverman (via Twitter). The Mariners bullpen could use a little help. Seattle’s relief crew ranks 24th in the Majors by ERA and 19th by FIP, though they haven’t been overworked, currently 26th in terms of their innings workload. The former closer will be a question mark until proven otherwise, however, having made just four appearances over the past two seasons.

Injured List Transactions: Perez, Perdomo, McGee, Casali

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The Royals reinstated catcher Salvador Perez from the 10-day injured list, and optioned catcher Sebastian Rivero to Triple-A in the corresponding move.  Perez missed only 11 days while recovering from a sprained left thumb suffered in the first game of a doubleheader on May 17, and the short turnaround time led the Royals to place Perez on the IL in between the two games.  Speaking with The Kansas City Star’s Lynn Worthy and other reporters, Perez said that he could be ready to resume catching duties tomorrow, as Perez will be in the DH role for today’s game with the Twins.

Following his huge 48-homer season in 2021, Perez has six homers and an underwhelming .206/.239/.397 slash line over 142 plate appearances to begin the 2022 campaign.  Perez has been making some hard contact but with little to show for it, and the longtime Royals backstop hasn’t been helping his cause with one of the lowest walk rates of any hitter in the league.

More on other players coming and going from the injured list…

  • The Brewers placed right-hander Luis Perdomo on the 15-day injured list with a right elbow effusion.  Righty Miguel Sanchez was recalled from Triple-A to take Perdomo’s spot on the active roster.  Milwaukee selected Perdomo’s contract earlier this month and he delivered a 1.74 ERA over 10 1/3 relief innings, but now faces another IL stint.  Since Perdomo missed the entire 2021 season recovering from Tommy John surgery, another elbow problem seems ominous, but Brewers manager Craig Counsell told the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel’s Todd Rosiak and other reporters that the injury doesn’t appear to be too serious.
  • The Giants reinstated left-hander Jake McGee from the 15-day injured list on Friday, though his actual return to the field was delayed by a clerical error.  McGee was called into yesterday’s game during the eighth inning, except he couldn’t pitch after the Reds told the umpiring crew that McGee wasn’t listed on the Giants’ official pregame lineup card.  As a result, Jose Alvarez was instead brought in to pitch, and Alvarez allowed two runs (one earned) to put the Giants into a deeper hole in an eventual 5-1 loss.  While not the wildest thing to happen to the Reds and Giants on Friday, it was the latest odd twist in what has been a rough season for McGee, who posted a 9.58 ERA in 10 1/3 innings out of San Francisco’s bullpen before back tightness sidelined him on May 11.
  • In another Giants move from today, the club reinstated catcher Curt Casali from the seven-day concussion IL and optioned Michael Papierski to Triple-A.  Casali was thankfully able to return in a minimal amount of time after taking a foul tip off his mask during a May 20 game.  This opened the door for Papierski to make his MLB debut, as the catcher appeared in five games while filling in for Casali.

Brewers Place Hunter Renfroe On Injured List, Select Mark Mathias

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The Brewers have placed corner outfielder Hunter Renfroe on the 10-day injured list due to a right hamstring strain. Milwaukee selected infielder Mark Mathias onto the big league roster in a corresponding move. The Brewers’ 40-man roster tally now sits at 38.

Milwaukee acquired Renfroe from the Red Sox over the winter, attaching prospects David Hamilton and Alex Binelas to the contract of Jackie Bradley Jr. in order to bring in Renfroe. The power-hitting outfielder had made a favorable impression on his new club, hitting .266/.303/.503 with nine home runs through 155 plate appearances. That’s been a marked upgrade over Bradley’s .163/.236/.261 production as the primary right fielder last season, a much-needed boost for a Milwaukee team that was middle-of-the-pack offensively in 2021. Manager Craig Counsell suggested to reporters (including Sophia Minnaert of Bally Sports Wisconsin) the club expects Renfroe back within ten to fourteen days.

Mathias is back in the majors for the first time this season. The Brew Crew had outrighted the right-handed hitter off their 40-man roster last November on the heels of a campaign lost to shoulder surgery. Mathias returned to health this year and has earned his way back with an incredible showing at Triple-A Nashville. Over 106 plate appearances, he’s hitting .341/.425/.549 with four home runs. Mathias has also walked in an impressive 11.3% of his trips to the dish while only striking out 19.8% of the time.

That work earns the 27-year-old his first MLB call in two years. A former Cleveland prospect, Mathias tallied 36 plate appearances over 16 games for the Brewers in 2020. That marks the entirety of his big league experience to date, but he’s a .262/.356/.406 hitter in parts of six minor league seasons. Mathias has experience at each of second base, third base and shortstop. The bulk of that playing time has come at the keystone.

Injury Notes: Bryant, Renfroe, Lynn

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Rockies left fielder Kris Bryant was scratched from yesterday’s game about 90 minutes before first pitch due to continued discomfort in his back, writes Patrick Saunders of the Denver Post. He’ll be further evaluated today, but it’s an ominous scratch given that Bryant only just returned from a month-long absence due to a lower back injury.

Signed to a seven-year, $182MM contract in free agency this past offseason, Bryant was viewed by the Rockies as a potential lineup centerpiece who’d bolster a revamped outfield that also featured trade acquisition Randal Grichuk. Bryant, however, has gotten out to a tepid .270/.342/.333 start to the season and yet to put a ball in the seats. The Rox barely changed the rest of their roster but did sign four in-house players to multi-year extensions (Ryan McMahon, Antonio Senzatela, C.J. Cron and Elias Diaz). Ownership and the restructured/thinned-out front office group clearly had confidence that last year’s group could deliver better results, and while that’s been true to an extent, the Rox are currently at fifth place in the NL West with a 19-22 record.

Some more injury scenarios to keep an eye on…

  • Brewers outfielder Hunter Renfroe exited yesterday’s game due to hamstring discomfort after scoring from first base on a double and is headed for an MRI to determine the extent of any damage he may have suffered, tweets MLB.com’s Adam McCalvy. Acquired in the offseason trade that saw the Brewers dump Jackie Bradley Jr.’s contract on the Red Sox — Milwaukee also sent a pair of prospects to Boston in the deal — Renfroe is out to a solid .266/.303/.503 start this season. His nine homers place him in a three-way tie for the team lead alongside Rowdy Tellez and Willy Adames. However, like Renfroe, Adames is currently sidelined; the Brewers placed him on the 10-day injured list last week, owing to a high ankle sprain. If Renfroe is to join Adames on the injured list, that’ll mean 29% of the Brewers’ home runs are sitting out at a time when the team has generally been struggling to score runs. Milwaukee ranks seventh in the Majors with 195 runs (4.6 per game), but they’re averaging just 3.5 runs per contest over their past 10 games.
  • Right-hander Lance Lynn has yet to make his 2022 debut with the White Sox after undergoing spring knee surgery, but he’ll throw to live hitters for the second time in his rehab process today, as noted by MLB.com’s Betelhem Ashame. Lynn, who also faced hitters this past Friday, inked a two-year, $38MM extension with the Sox last summer just prior to the trade deadline. The 35-year-old Lynn had a career year with the South Siders in 2021, pitching to a 2.69 ERA in 157 innings over the life of 28 starts, and he’s posted a terrific 3.26 ERA in 449 1/3 frames dating back to 2020.

Brewers Outright Dylan File

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The Brewers announced Monday that right-hander Dylan File has cleared waivers and been assigned outright to Triple-A Nashville. The team had not previously announced that File had been designated for assignment or placed on waivers.

File, 25, was selected to the 40-man roster back in Nov. 2020, as the Brewers looked to protect him from the forthcoming Rule 5 Draft. In his most recent full season of work at that point, the former 21st-rounder had pitched to a combined 3.24 ERA with a 22.7% strikeout rate and a microscopic 3.7% walk rate in 147 frames between Class-A Advanced and Double-A.

Things haven’t gone as well for File in Triple-A, though his results have been better so far in 2022 than in 2021. Last season, the righty limped to a 5.27 ERA in 42 2/3 frames. He’s sitting at 4.10 through his first 37 1/3 innings this year, but while the ERA is improved, File’s rate stats have taken a turn for the worse. His already meager 19.4% strikeout rate has dipped to 17.9%, while last year’s strong 6.5% walk rate has swelled to 9.9%.

The Brewers’ 40-man roster now sits at 37 players.

Counsell: Freddy Peralta To Miss “Significant” Time

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An MRI of Freddy Peralta’s sore right shoulder revealed a posterior shoulder strain, and the right-hander is expected to miss “significant” time, Brewers manager Craig Counsell announced to reporters Monday (Twitter link, with video, via MLB.com’s Adam McCalvy). The Brewers expect that Peralta will be able to return this season, but a specific timetable isn’t yet clear. Surgery isn’t expected  to be necessary, Counsell added. Left-hander Aaron Ashby is expected to step into the Milwaukee rotation in his place, joining Corbin Burnes, Brandon Woodruff, Eric Lauer and Adrian Houser.

Deep and talented as Milwaukee’s pitching staff is, there’s little denying that Peralta’s loss is a major one for the Brew Crew. The right-hander hasn’t been himself this year, evidenced by a pedestrian 4.42 ERA and a diminished (albeit still excellent) 30.3% strikeout rate through his first 38 2/3 frames. That’s solid production for a fourth or fifth starter but a far cry from Peralta’s dominant 2021 campaign, when he posted a 2.81 ERA and 33.6% strikeout rate through 144 1/3 frames.

The group of Burnes, Woodruff and Peralta looked to be arguably the top rotation trio of any team in the league, but it hasn’t played out that way this year. Burnes has been dominant, following up on his 2021 Cy Young win with a brilliant 2.26 ERA in 51 2/3 innings. But both Peralta and Woodruff have struggled to match last year’s outstanding results. Rather, it’s been Lauer who has stepped things up considerably, while through his first seven turns, the underrated Houser somewhat remarkably has perfectly replicated last year’s 3.22 ERA.

Ashby will now step into that mix and hope to solidify his place in the Milwaukee rotation for the foreseeable future. A former fourth-round pick, Ashby has generally been considered the Brewers’ top pitching prospect for the past few seasons and, so far in 2022, has looked the part. He’s split his time between the rotation and the bullpen, notching a 3.49 ERA with a strong 27.6% strikeout rate and a mammoth 64.8% grounder rate. Ashby’s command has been spotty, as advertised (13.8% walk rate), but he’s minimizing hard contact and getting tons of chases off the plate (35.5%). He’s yet to pitch more than four innings in an outing this season, though, so it’ll be telling just how Ashby fares when working deeper into games and perhaps turning a lineup over for a third time.

Brewers To Place Freddy Peralta On Injured List Due To Shoulder Tightness

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Brewers right-hander Freddy Peralta had to leave today’s game in the fourth inning due to right shoulder tightness.  Manager Craig Counsell told reporters (including Andrew Wagner) will be placed on the injured list, and an MRI will reveal more about Peralta’s condition tomorrow.

Something was clearly off with Peralta all game, as he allowed five runs on six hits over his three-plus innings of work in today’s 8-2 Brewers loss to the Nationals.  Only two of those runs came in Peralta’s first three frames, but after allowing hits to the first three batters faced in the fourth inning, Peralta left the game after a mound visit from the team trainer.

Peralta also missed about two weeks late last season with inflammation in that same shoulder.  That IL visit was pretty much the only blemish in an otherwise terrific year for the righty, as Peralta posted a 2.81 ERA, 33.6% strikeout rate, and 9.7% walk rate over 144 1/3 innings.  This earned Peralta his first All-Star appearance, and also cemented his spot in Milwaukee’s rotation after working mostly as a part-time starter or swingman role in his first three Major League seasons.

The Brewers will undoubtedly miss Peralta while he recovers, especially since the club is set to play 15 games over the next 14 days.  However, the Brew Crew are one of the few teams with a deep enough rotation to potentially withstand the loss, as Aaron Ashby is on hand to fill Peralta’s spot in the starting five.  Counsell confirmed that the team would stay with a five-man rotation, so a spot starter will be required at some point over this busy stretch of the schedule (probably when the Brewers face the Cubs in a doubleheader on May 30).

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