Christian Yelich Returns to Brewers Lineup After Month Away
Christian Yelich returned to the Brewers lineup on May 18 after missing a month with a left groin strain, and Milwaukee put him back in the No. 3 spot against San Diego right-hander Matt Waldron. The move gives the Brewers their designated hitter back after a stretch that tested the depth of a lineup that had kept scoring at a high level without him.
Yelich Back In No. 3 Spot
Yelich was activated from the 10-day injured list and immediately slotted into the middle of the order. Milwaukee chose the No. 3 spot for a reason: he had opened the season with a.314/.375/.451 line and one home run in his first 56 plate appearances before the middle-of-April strain interrupted that run.
That return lands at a point when the Brewers no longer need to chase offense just to survive. They ranked eighth in the majors in scoring while Yelich was out, a run that kept the lineup moving even as the club waited for its regular designated hitter to come back.
Brewers Shuffle The Roster
To clear the roster spot, Milwaukee optioned Tyler Black back to Triple-A Nashville. Andrew Vaughn was also back from injury, giving the Brewers more moving parts around first base and designated hitter as they sort through limited at-bats for Yelich, Vaughn, Jake Bauers, William Contreras and Gary Sánchez.
The setup shows how the Brewers handled the month without him: Gary Sánchez and Black took most of the designated hitter reps while Yelich recovered. Now the lineup can revert to a more natural shape, with Yelich available in a spot where Milwaukee had been using replacements.
Priester And Lockridge Updates
Pat Murphy also said Quinn Priester is scheduled to resume his rehab assignment on Saturday after being out all season with a nerve issue that surfaced during Spring Training. Priester started a rehab stint in late April, and the Brewers are hoping to get him back in the beginning of June.
Brandon Lockridge is aiming to return to MLB action a couple weeks after that timeline after a deep laceration in his right knee on Friday at American Family Field. He avoided any fractures, but the injury hit a concrete area below the padding and sent another jolt through a roster already dealing with moving pieces.
For Milwaukee, Yelich’s return is the cleanest move in the group. The Brewers get a middle-of-the-order bat back immediately, and they can now use the coming stretch to see how much better the lineup looks with its No. 3 hitter restored instead of patched together.
