Brewers send Woodruff down
What figures to be an ongoing game of pitching roulette continued Saturday as the Milwaukee Brewers optioned right-hander Brandon
Woodruff to Class AAA Colorado Springs and selected the contract of reliever J.J. Hoover from that club.
Woodruff made his first start of 2018 on Friday night against the Cubs and made it through only 32⁄3 innings, surrendering two runs. The Brewers eventually won on Orlando Arcia’s walk-off single in the bottom of the ninth but having to cover 51⁄3 innings out of a bullpen already heavily used created the need for a new reliever. “We need a fresh arm,” manager
Craig Counsell said.
The Brewers will need a pitcher to fill Woodruff ’s spot in the rotation Wednesday in St. Louis but they will worry about that later. Counsell said a pitcher would be called up for the minors to make that start.
“That’s TBA at this point,” Counsell said. Woodruff cannot be recalled to start that game against St. Louis because players optioned to the minors must stay down at least 10 days unless there is an injury.
The Brewers called up right-hander Adrian Houser on Friday when closer Corey Knebel went on the disabled list with a hamstring strain. Houser has not pitched yet, but the Brewers wanted another arm in the bullpen because neither Josh Hader nor Matt
Albers would be available Saturday after going two innings each Friday night.
“The pen has logged a lot of innings (36 2⁄3 in eight games) and a couple of guys had some long appearances yesterday,” Counsell said. “J.J. is fresh and ready to go.”
Hoover and Taylor Williams were the last relievers cut at the end of spring training. Williams was not eligible to be recalled because he was optioned to Colorado Springs and had not been down 10 days. Hoover was on a minor-league contract and therefore did not fall under that restriction.
“It was a tough decision at the end (of camp),” Counsell said. “I expected (Hoover) to be here quickly. He had a good camp; he did his job. We went with some different guys at the start to preserve depth, but we need (Hoover) already. We’re going to use those guys. You can see how this is going.
“The fit matters when we’re doing this a little more actively. The term of it matters as to who we’re looking at.”
To open a space for Hoover on the 40-man roster, the Brewers designated left-handed reliever Tyler Webb for assignment. They have 10 days to trade him, release him or assign him outright to the minors if he clears waivers.
Of dropping a just-used starting pitcher to add relief help, Counsell said, “It’s a way to do it. I think we’re in a mode where (GM) David (Stearns) is actively managing the roster. We have to consider that on a daily basis right now.
“For a while, it looks like now we’ll have some flexibility with that spot; the ability to get arms here if we need them. It’s having players with (minorleague) options.”
Woodruff ’s start was cut short against the Cubs by an excessive pitch count of 95 with two down in the fourth inning.
Counsell said he didn’t think Woodruff, who had pitched in relief four days earlier, threw the ball poorly but the pitch count did him in.
“They did make him work,” Counsell said. “He had a hard time putting away hitters; lots of foul balls, lots of deep counts. I thought he fatigued a little bit in the fourth because he had to work so hard.
"But he made pitches. He made a lot of pitches right on the corners, (had) a really firm fastball. He’s going to be successful pitching like that.”
A lion's roar: By nature, reliever Albers is a quiet, easy-going guy. But after striking out Kyle Schwarber to strand two runners in the ninth inning Friday night and preserve a 4-4 tie, Albers stomped off the mound and let out a roar, which did not go unnoticed by his teammates in the dugout.
“He did that in San Diego as well (on opening day),” Counsell said. “He’s come off the mound pretty fired up twice. He has fired up the dugout twice. I love that.
“He is mild-mannered. You’re not going to get any hint of emotion from him before the game or before he takes the mound. That (on-field emotion) is something I wasn’t familiar with, with Matt. But that always gets the dugout going, so it’s always welcome. There’s always a reponse to that, 100%.”
Asked afterward about showing that emotion on the field, Albers said, “I was trying to fire up the troops a little bit.”
Mission accomplished.
“We use that; I think our position players use that,” Counsell said. “I think our position players love that. We should be celebrating guys showing emotion rather than stifling it, I think.
“On the field, players have been hesitant to show emotion, really out of respecting the other team, and things like that. But I think we’re moving a little past that. This is entertainment. It’s what we want to see.”