Brewers hit with more positive COVID tests
Team loses three relievers to quarantine
ATLANTA – The Milwaukee Brewers lost players to positive COVID-19 tests Saturday for the second time in five days.
Manager Craig Counsell reported before the team’s game against Atlanta that relievers Hunter Strickland and Jake Cousins tested positive and were placed in quarantine for a minimum of 10 days, with reliever Jandel Gustave going out for seven because of close contact.
When the Brewers traveled from Milwaukee to Pittsburgh at the start of this trip Tuesday morning, leftfielder Christian Yelich was left behind after a positive COVID-19 test, with utility player Jace Peterson also going into quarantine because of contact tracing.
“We’re following Major League
Baseball's protocols, and the intensive contact tracing and doing the best we can with that and trying to move forward,” Counsell said.
“In Cousins' and Strickland's case, they reported symptoms. They're vaccinated individuals that reported symptoms, and Gustave just got caught up in it. He had no symptoms.”
Cousins and Gustave were placed on the COVID-19 injured list (Gustave for contact tracing) immediately, but the move on Strickland was delayed until Sunday because of a roster technicality.
Fortunately for the Brewers, newly acquired relievers Daniel Norris and John Curtiss joined the team Saturday, leaving them down only one pitcher in the bullpen.
“We'll be one short today,” Counsell confirmed.
“(Norris and Curtiss) are both good to go. Both have had multiple days off, so they're in good shape for a day like this, actually.”
Asked if the newest positive cases were connected to those of Yelich and Peterson, Counsell said, “There's no way to know that.”
As for whether two cases in five days might mean more are coming, Counsell said, “I wouldn't say that.
“I think we're trying to keep moving forward, so I wouldn't say that, no. I think this is something that's happening. You can't be completely prepared for it.
“Today, we frankly got a little bit lucky that we had a couple players here. But I wouldn't go there with it. COVID is still around us, so we have to understand that. Everybody's doing their best, but obviously, like we've talked about before, it's challenging.
“We're obviously a little bit concerned that this is just popping up, so we're trying to get through that part of it.
“We're hoping we can minimize it and keep it where it is, and that's where we're at.”
Curtiss learned of trade from Mattingly
It will be interesting to see if Curtiss stays active because he said he was told of his trade to the Brewers on Friday by Miami manager Don Mattingly, who tested positive Saturday for COVID-19 and did not manage his club's game against the New York Yankees.
Curtiss said he was on the field with the other Marlins relievers when Mattingly came out to tell him he was going to Milwaukee.
“He told me at 4 o'clock (Eastern), right on the deadline,” Curtiss said. “Donnie came out and was walking toward the relievers and we were looking at him, like, ‘Who's it going to be?' He came up to me and I said, ‘Where?' He said, ‘Milwaukee,' and I said, ‘Oh, great.'
“I went in and made the phone calls, then packed up my apartment last night and flew out this morning. I got traded in spring training (by Tampa Bay), so you never know.”
Curtiss, 28, appeared twice for the Marlins this season against the Brewers – on April 27 on the road and May 8 at home – and fared poorly both times. In a combined 22⁄3 innings, he allowed three hits and three runs with no walks and four strikeouts.
Those were a couple of hiccups in an otherwise strong year for Curtiss, who had a 2.48 ERA and .227 opponents' batting average over 35 appearances, including a 1.00 ERA and 0.89 WHIP over his last 16 games.
“I got a loss against them, so I've been helping this team since May and April,” Curtiss joked. “I guess I just really wanted to be a Brewer.”
Norris had emotional goodbye
Norris said he also was told of his trade after reporting to the ballpark in Detroit by manager A.J. Hinch. He had been with the Tigers since being sent to them in 2015 in a blockbuster trade for David Price, so leaving the club made him a bit emotional.
“Just the friendships, the trainers, the security guards, everybody you just come to know and are part of the family
Hunter Strickland is one of two Brewers who have been placed in 10-day quarantine, along with Jake Cousins, after testing positive for coronavirus.
there. It's hard to say goodbye abruptly like that,” Norris said.
“Obviously, I'm beyond excited to be here. I'm very grateful to be here but goodbyes are never easy. It was heartfelt and genuine. I do miss those people but I'm very fortunate to be here on a good team. Whenever this time comes around every year, you're kind of antsy. I was taking it day by day.”
Norris had been a starting pitcher until last year and said it took some time to make that adjustment before finally getting more comfortable.
“I consider this my first year out of the bullpen because last year I was following (Michael) Fulmer and he was going three innings, then I'd go three innings. I kind of knew when I was going to pitch. I'd do my starter's routine.
“This year was a transition period. Being available to pitch every day was different for me. I had to change my workout routine, what I did to get my body ready every day. It just took a little bit getting used to, but I've actually enjoyed it.”
Escobar makes debut at first
The Brewers said when they traded for switch-hitting Eduardo Escobar that they planned to give him action at first base against left-handed pitchers and they wasted no time doing so. Escobar started there Saturday night against Braves lefty Kyle Muller.
Not only had Escobar never played first base in a professional game, he worked out there for the first time before the Brewers took pre-game batting practice.
Counsell downplayed the rush job in getting Escobar at a new position so quickly.
“He's a baseball player,” Counsell said. “We're not sending a baseball player into a basketball game here.
“He's a baseball player. Look, he's going to have to learn on the job. That's where we're at. The situations that are going to be challenging for him are going to come up in the game, not practice, and I think the fact that he's an instinctual, heady player, there's going to be a learning curve, there's going to be mistakes.
“But it's the right time of the year where getting him on the field at that spot, when it makes sense for our team, is what we need to do to get him as prepared as possible as we move on in the season.”