Brewers employ backup plan at catcher
A minor injury suffered by catcher Manny Piña led to some roster shuffling Wednesday for the Milwaukee Brewers.
Jacob Nottingham was officially recalled from the team's alternate training site in Appleton and right-handed reliever Bobby Wahl was optioned there to make room for him on the 30-man roster.
Nottingham was already with the Brewers in Pittsburgh as part of their unannounced three-man taxi squad, so they remained at full strength for their series finale with the Pirates at PNC Park.
“Manny got a little banged up yesterday; I'd like to avoid him today,” manager Craig Counsell said. “So we activated Jacob and that should allow us to, basically. (Manny) took a foul tip off one of his catching fingers and it's pretty sore today.”
Teams are allowed to designate three players to the taxi squad each series this season in response to the COVID-19 pandemic, and the need for additional roster flexibility that's been generated because of that.
Those players can take batting practice, throw bullpen sessions and work out with the team. But without the ability to see live game action, they are unable to remain as sharp as needed and therefore are expected to be rotated between the taxi squad and Appleton to ensure they'll be ready to be plugged in with the Brewers when needed.
“I think the guys who are traveling with us, they need to play. Taking a week off and not being able to play is not good for that,” Counsell said. “They need to be playing, taking live at-bats or pitching to hitters. This is probably not a move we would have made during a regular season. With what's coming for us, it just allows us to do this.”
The Brewers remain well-stocked in the bullpen even with the departure of Wahl, who was tied with Corey Knebel and Eric Yardley for most appearances on the team with three.
The game action has been Wahl's first in the major leagues since 2018 when he was with the New York Mets; he missed all of last season while recovering from right ACL surgery. He departs with an 0-1 record, 11.57 earned run average and a WHIP of 1.71 after allowing a pair of home runs in 21⁄3 innings.
The two-run homer he allowed to Adam Frazier on Tuesday was the decisive blow in the Brewers' 8-6 loss.
“He needs to be on a mound, pitching against hitters,” Counsell said. “Bobby and I talked about it today – he just hasn't faced a lot of hitters for the last two years. His stuff will improve. His feel, which is another way to say command; he doesn't have to be a pin-point command guy.
“Yesterday was a good example. His misses were just too big. You can miss and still get swings, but his misses were pretty scattered. Just being on the mound is going to help him get better with that, and he'll definitely be able to do that once he gets to Appleton.
“I anticipate we'll see him (with the Brewers) again, for sure.”
Lindblom sore but OK
What appeared to be a scary moment Tuesday when starter Josh Lindblom was forced from the game in the fifth inning with what was later diagnosed as back cramps.
The Brewers were relatively certain afterward it wasn't a serious issue, and Counsell confirmed that Wednesday.
“He's doing fine,” he said. “He said he felt like he just had an ab workout, so you know how you feel after that. The thing we have to do is keep being diligent.
“If you're cramping, it's probably about what you're putting into your body and what's coming out of it the day before and the day of your start.”
Rest of the rotation
Counsell did say that he believes Lindblom will be able to take his next turn in the rotation, which would be Monday against the Chicago White Sox at Miller Park.
With Brandon Woodruff starting Wednesday's game, Brett Anderson is poised to be reinstated from the injured list Friday for his Brewers debut. He's been out with a blister on his left index finger and should be able to throw somewhere around 60-70 pitches.
But the Brewers will also need to be prepared in case Anderson's finger flares up again, which is why Counsell is holding off on announcing his Saturday starter against the St. Louis Cardinals.
Corbin Burnes filled in for Anderson last Saturday in Chicago and would be an option to pick up for Anderson if he were to leave his start early.
“These guys are all available,” Counsell said. “I think the better way to look at it is we're going to give ourselves options for Friday's game before we decide what's going to happen Saturday.”
Counsell also confirmed Adrian Houser will start Sunday's series finale against the Cardinals.