Reliever Albers returns from the disabled list

The Brewers took a step toward getting their bullpen whole again Wednesday by activating Matt Albers from the 10-day disabled list.

To make room for Albers on their roster, the Brewers optioned outfielder Keon Broxton to Class A Wisconsin. Broxton was assigned to that club to keep him close to Milwaukee, where his girlfriend is scheduled to give birth soon.

During the first half of the season, when the bullpen was by far the dominant force for the Brewers, Albers was a big part of the success. Through his first 24 appearances, he posted a 1.93 earned run average while pitching primarily in late-inning, high-leverage situations.

But, after getting tagged for five runs in two-thirds of an inning by the Cubs on June 11, it was revealed that Albers had shoulder inflammation, which landed him on the DL. He returned in late July but was roughed up for 10 runs in only 1 2/3 innings over four appearances and went back on the DL with a hamstring strain.

Albers made three rehab appearances for Class AA Biloxi, pitching four shutout innings with six strikeouts, and manager Craig Counsell said the hope is that he is ready to be used in key situations again.

“The reason we had so much success early in the season with the bullpen was because Matt Albers, Taylor Williams, Dan Jennings throwing big innings for us and doing a nice job,” Counsell said. “You need that in a bullpen. You can’t have a two-man bullpen.”

The “two-man bullpen” to which Counsell referred is the combination of right-hander Jeremy Jeffress and lefty Josh Hader, the only two highleverage relievers on whom he has been able to count on in recent weeks. Jeffress and Hader combined for three innings in wins in St. Louis on Sunday as well as against Cincinnati on Monday, making them unavailable for a couple of days.

The bullpen suffered a costly 1-2 punch in the ninth inning on Aug. 9 against San Diego when Corey Knebel walked the bases loaded, forcing Counsell to summon newcomer Joakim Soria, who suffered a groin strain and has been on the DL since. Since that game, Counsell has tried to get Knebel on track with less stressful appearances without much success.

“Getting Matt back; Taylor Williams is throwing the ball well; getting Soria back this weekend (if all goes well), that’s what I’m hopeful about in getting us back on the right track," Counsell said. "Matt was happy with how his sinker felt (in Biloxi). That’s a good sign. We’ll get him out there in a good routine and hopefully pitching well.”

What’s going to happen with Knebel remains to be seen. After Jennings surrendered a tie-breaking home run to Cincinnati’s Scooter Gennett in the ninth inning Tuesday night, Knebel took over and surrendered a single to Eugenio Suarez and RBI triple to Mason Williams.

Pitching scoreless outings has become a major chore for Knebel, who has a 7.24 ERA in 14 games since the all-star break and 8.64 ERA in nine outings in August. It has been a far cry from the lock-down closer who posted a 1.78 ERA in 76 appearances in 2017 with 39 saves and 126 strikeouts in 76 innings.

“Corey is struggling right now, for sure,” Counsell said. “It’s a little bit of a challenge. We’re searching for answers. It’s a difficult one because the velocity has almost been better for a big chunk of this. That makes it a little more odd in trying to diagnose this.

“His curveball has kind of come and gone. It’s been a little inconsistent. There’s been some outings where we really liked it but the last two where the curveball wasn’t so good. It comes down to executing pitches right now. He’s having trouble consistently executing them.

“When you see the shape of (the curveball), kind of up and down, that’s the curveball you want to see from Corey. When it gets a little east-west, that’s not the shape you want to see in his curveball.”

As with any player struggling over an extended period of time, no matter how experienced, there is a loss of confidence as well, which Counsell said is another factor with Knebel.

“There’s no question, that’s a part of it,” Counsell said. “We all need to have a little success and positive feedback.”

Ryder Cup stop: Before the game, Brewers players, staff and media members had a chance to see the Ryder Cup trophy and talk with officials from the tournament as well as Herbert V. Kohler Jr., whose Whistling Straits Golf Course will host the competition in 2020.

The visit was part of the U.S. Ryder Cup Trophy Tour, a month-long, 9,000-mile trip leading to the 2018 tournament in Paris. Whistling Straits has hosted three PGA Championships, most recently in 2015, and Kohler said the Ryder Cup coming there is another coup.

"It's the grand daddy of them all," Kohler said. "It's very nationalistic, and has become even more so in recent years. It's the only tournament like that. It gives people a chance to get a little crazy. I love it.

"This is what we had in mind when we built the course. We wanted a venue to hold major tournaments. I think we've done that."