MILWAUKEE -- Brewers star Christian Yelich missed a second straight game with a swollen right wrist on Wednesday, when the Brew Crew was on the business end of Braves right-hander Spencer Schwellenbach’s 105-pitch complete game in a 6-2 loss to Atlanta at American Family Field.
Yelich’s injury stems from a hit-by-pitch on June 1 in Philadelphia. He didn’t miss any time in the immediate aftermath of the 90 mph sinker from Ranger Suárez that struck him in the Brewers’ series finale against the Phillies, and actually hit a go-ahead homer the next night in Cincinnati. But he re-aggravated the injury on a slide last weekend against the Padres.
For the second time, X-rays were negative, and Yelich was the designated hitter against Chris Sale and the Braves on Monday. But “it just felt awful,” according to manager Pat Murphy.
“It’s just more precautionary,” Murphy said. “He did not swing [Tuesday], but made himself available to pinch-run or whatever we needed. Today he’s going to test it and swing a little bit. We hope we can avoid imaging or anything else, that he feels good enough that the swelling is out of there and he can progress. …
“You guys know, baseball players, when you deal with something in the wrist or the hand, they’re delicate. We just hope there’s nothing worse in there.”
Yelich reported feeling better on Wednesday and had planned to take some swings, but Murphy said he suggested one more day of full rest. The Brewers will evaluate Yelich’s availability when he gets to the ballpark on Thursday ahead of right-handed prospect Jacob Misiorowski’s Major League mound debut in the opener of a four-game series against the Cardinals.
The Brewers will have to get the offense going against Cardinals ace Sonny Gray, because they didn’t do much while losing back-to-back series against the Padres and Braves to open this longest homestand of Milwaukee’s season. In the four losses so far, the Brewers have scored three total runs and been shut out twice.
The series loss to the Braves was particularly disheartening because Atlanta came in having lost 14 of 17 games including seven in a row. But starters Chris Sale (seven innings of one-run ball on Monday) and Schwellenbach (five hits, two runs, nine strikeouts in his first career complete game) put the Braves back on track.
“If that isn't a good Major League team, I don't know,” Murphy said. “Because those three starters, it felt like we were facing three closers who stayed out there for seven, eight, nine innings. It's pretty special stuff. It was tough to see today, really tough, for both teams. To see them strike out 14 times against rookie pitchers is unusual for them, too.
“But that kid [Schwellenbach] was really good; 98 in the zone in the ninth inning? Show me a guy that goes nine innings and throws 98 in the ninth, I'll show you a guy that's got some potential. So all the credit this week to the Braves. They were great."