Brewers place slumping Rowdy Tellez on injured list as part of series of roster moves
In a flurry of roster moves, the Milwaukee Brewers placed struggling first baseman Rowdy Tellez on the injured list and designated infielder Mike Brosseau for assignment Wednesday.
The Brewers also reinstated infielder Brian Anderson from the paternity list, released pitcher Thomas Pannone, optioned pitchers JB Bukauskas and Clayton Andrews to Class AAA Nashville and called up pitchers Tyson Miller and J.C. Mejia.
The move to place Tellez on the IL with right forearm inflammation was the most notable.
Tellez has not hit a home run since May 22, a stretch of 128 plate appearances, and has just four extra-base hits and an OPS of .410 in a slump that is easily the worst of his career.
Tellez has been dealing with discomfort for a while now but was able to play through. With the all-star break approaching and Tellez scuffling, the Brewers felt the time was right to put him on the IL.
"It’s something he’s been dealing with and managing and we’ve been fine with it," Brewers manager Craig Counsell said "The last two days, the symptoms have been more frequent and gotten a little worse. We’re looking at where we’re at in the schedule and everything and I think this is our best chance to hopefully be able to manage it for the second half, really.
"Hopefully we get some rest here and that allows him to manage the second half and frankly be successful."
Tellez felt the pain most often on occasional swings, but especially check swings.
"Having a violent, long swing, very long with one hand, it wore on it a little bit," Tellez said. "There’s certain times where you take some weird swings or check swings and it would flare up a little bit. That’s just part of it. That’s what we’re here to do. We’re paid to play every day and there’s just times that it’s worse than others."
Tellez also wasn't willing to excuse his poor play on the injury.
"It’s been some time but it shouldn’t affect the way I play," he said. "I’ve been playing pretty poor, so you can’t attribute injuries or discomfort to your body for the way you play on the field. It’s something that’s been there but it’s my job to show up every day, it’s my job to perform at a high level."
The expectation from Tellez and the Brewers is he will miss the minimum 10 days.
Needing to clear a 40-man roster spot for Mejia, the Brewers opted to cut ties with Brosseau, who was a key part of the lineup last season as well as early this year before struggling with Nashville following a demotion in June.
In 64 plate appearances with the Sounds, Brosseau was batting just .188 with a .607 OPS. In 98 games with the Brewers, Brosseau had a .726 OPS with 10 home runs.
Bukauskas and Andrews were both sent back to Nashville as part of an ongoing shuttling of relievers to keep a recently overtaxed bullpen fresh. They each made two appearances since being recalled on Saturday, their first in Milwaukee uniforms.
Mejia appeared in two games for the Brewers last season before he was suspended for 80 games for testing positive for a Stanazolol, banned performance-enhancing substance. The right-hander signed a minor-league deal with the Brewers in the off-season and had a 3.86 ERA in Triple-A in 30 ⅓ innings before having his contract selected.
Anderson's wife, Alex, gave birth to their first child, a boy named Baker Wyatt Anderson, Tuesday morning.
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This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: Brewers place Rowdy Tellez on injured list, DFA Mike Brosseau
