Sore shoulder puts Albers on DL
Major-league pitchers, especially relief pitchers who work a lot, often have aches and pains they can pitch through, but when your effectiveness becomes an issue, it’s time to back off.
That was the case Tuesday for Milwaukee Brewers reliever Matt Albers, who went on the 10-day disabled list with shoulder soreness. The severity of the issue would not be determined until Albers was examined by team physician
William Raasch.
To replace Albers on the roster, the Brewers recalled right-handed reliever
Jorge Lopez from Class AAA Colorado Springs for his fourth stint with the club this season.
Albers’ effectiveness had waned considerably in recent outings, capped by the five runs he surrendered in the 11th inning Monday night that allowed the Chicago Cubs to take a 7-2 victory at Miller Park. Albers’ outing began with a first-pitch home run by Anthony Rizzo and only got worse before he departed with two outs.
After posting a 1.35 earned run average in 12 outings in March/April and 0.77 ERA in nine appearances in May, Albers had surrendered nine hits and eight runs in 3 2⁄3 innings (19.64 ERA) in four games in June.
“He reported some soreness after the game; he said it’s been there for a little bit,” manager Craig Counsell said. “We’ve got to shut it down and try to get it better. Hopefully, it’s something on the shorter end of things. We’ll have the diagnostics done and hopefully have an answer a little bit later in the week.
“Hopefully, we can get that out of there and get back to what we were seeing for the first two months of the season, which was pretty darn good.”
As for trying to work through such issues, Counsell said, “It is a very tough call. Everybody’s got something going on, and you play through things. If you’ve played as long as Matt has, you know yourself pretty well. You’ve played and pitched not being perfect all the time before.
“He got to the point where it was affecting him out there on the field and it was time to take a break from it.”
Lopez made six appearances in his three previous stints with the Brewers, posting a 4.35 ERA over 10 1/3 innings. In 15 outings for Colorado Springs, he is 2-2 with a 3.06 ERA with four saves in five chances and .206 opponents batting average.
A great beginning: When you’ve bounced around to as many big-league teams as catcher Erik Kratz has – seven, including two stints with Pittsburgh and Philadelphia – you get a lot of chances to make “first” impressions. Sometimes they go well, sometimes they don’t.
In 2016, when Kratz first played for Houston and later for Pittsburgh, he said he began both stints going 0 for 15.
“I got a hit in my 16th at-bat, both times,” he said. “It’s just one of those things where the balls weren’t falling.”
Kratz hasn’t had that issue with the Brewers. Since being acquired from the New York Yankees on May 25, he has swung a very hot bat, including his third home run in six games Monday night in the loss to the Cubs. With 10 hits in his first 23 at-bats, he is hitting .435 with a heady 1.370 OPS.
“First time traded, 10th time traded, whatever it is, it helps a lot,” Kratz said of the hot start. “Obviously, the ones that fall in the seats, they can’t rob from you. But you’re not trying to hit home runs. You’re trying to barrel it up and drive the ball.
“You’re really just trying to put together good at-bats. The results take care of themselves. I’ve learned from all of that. You always have to prove yourself, so you always care how you do. It’s no different now.”
Counsell said Kratz has been impressive in everything he has done, including his work behind the plate, learning a new pitching staff on the fly.
“Tyler Saladino made a good first impression (before getting injured), so a couple of (new) guys got off to great starts,” Counsell said. “I think it’s important for guys like Erik and Tyler, it just helps put the player at ease. He’s made a major contribution when he’s been in there. Defensively, he’s done a really nice job but he’s done a heck of a job offensively.”