CAMP REPORT
On the field: Pitching on a mound made slick by light rain, closer Corey Knebel slipped and tweaked his left knee in the seventh inning against Colorado. Knebel was removed from the game in what manager Craig Counsell called a precautionary move.
"He's fine," Counsell said. "He just slipped a little on the mound. It's just precautionary. It's a knee, but it's very minor. We're all right."
Asked if he expected Knebel to miss any time, Counsell said, "I don't think so. Not planning on it, really. We'll treat him tomorrow and he's got a couple days off. So we'll see."
Left-hander Brent Suter took another step toward securing a spot in the starting rotation with four shutout innings of the Rockies, allowing two hits and a walk with four strikeouts. In four Cactus League outings, Suter has pitched eight shutout innings, with two hits, two walks and eight strikeouts.
"I'm giving it my all and putting my best foot forward, I guess," Suter said. "I'm just trying to get outs, trying to execute pitches as best I can. Trying to throw strikes as best I can and kind of let them make the decision or whatever. I'm just trying to show them I worked hard this off-season. I'm definitely giving it my all." Weather: Light rain, 73 degrees. Cactus juice: As with many clubs, the Brewers use a statistical formula to determine the salaries of pre-arbitration players (less than three years of service time). The salary offer is basically nonnegotiable, and players can agree to them or not. If they don’t, they get “renewed” at the club’s offer.
Third baseman Travis Shaw chose to be renewed this spring, his way of protesting what he thought was a low offer. The figure is not yet known but likely is not much higher than his 2017 salary of $544,400, when he tied for the club lead with 31 homers and led the Brewers with 101 RBI.
“Their formula cranked out a number and we didn’t agree with that number,” said Shaw, who is represented by agent Joe Bick. “There’s nothing really you can do about it. It’s a way of saying we didn’t agree with the number.”
Scoreboard: Brewers 9, Rockies 2. Record: 9-6-1. Sunday: Brewers at Indians, 3:05 p.m. Milwaukee LHP Wade Miley (0-0, 0.00) vs. Cleveland RHP Carlos Carrasco (0-0, 6.00). Radio: 620-AM. Countdown: 18 days until the Brewers' season opener March 29 in San Diego.
Tom Haudricourt