Pat Murphy explains how Brewers will use versatile Greg Jones amid injury woes

The Milwaukee Brewers' early-season injuries are piling up. With Christian Yelich landing on the injured list earlier today due to an abductor (groin) strain that he suffered in Sunday afternoon's loss to the Washington Nationals, three of the Brewers' top five hitters in their batting order -- Yelich, Jackson Chourio, and Andrew Vaughn -- now find themselves on the IL before April's midway point.

Yelich met with the media prior to the Brewers' series opener against the Toronto Blue Jays this evening and didn't want to put a timeline on his recovery, in an effort to remain optimistic about the mid- to late-May timeline that was reported by the team earlier today. Manager Pat Murphy, however, did put a timeline on the return of his two other injured position players, noting that both Chourio and Vaughn are expected to start swinging later this week with the hope that they will start hitting next Friday, April 24. That puts both Chourio and Vaughn on track to return to the lineup sometime in early May, assuming all goes well with their respective rehab stints.

As a result of Chourio and Vaughn's injuries, players like Blake Perkins, Brandon Lockridge, and Gary Sánchez have seen more opportunities for the Crew. Sánchez has filled in as the right-handed option at first base, while Perkins and Lockridge have seen more opportunities in the outfield. With Yelich now on the shelf, the Brewers will have to fill even more at-bats with players who they weren't planning on playing important roles this early in the season.

One of those players, who is getting an opportunity with the big-league club as a result of the Brewers' unfortunate string of injuries, is utility man Greg Jones, who was promoted from Triple-A this afternoon to fill Yelich's spot on the major league roster. As a player who can do a little bit of everything on the defensive side of the ball, questions remained about where Jones would see a majority of his opportunities with the Brewers following his promotion. Thankfully, Murphy cleared up that question in his pre-game press conference this afternoon.

Greg Jones expected to see a majority of his opportunities with the Brewers in the outfield

When asked about Jones ahead of today's game, Murphy said, "He's a great young man, first and foremost...[He's] very willing, good attitude, really good defender in the outfield, certainly not afraid."

I followed up by asking Murphy if he expects Jones to mostly play outfield with the big league club, and he responded saying, "Yeah. [Though] the fact that he can come in and play the infield benefits the guy...A few more injuries and he might be pitching."

Throughout Jones' minor league career, the former first-round pick has played 116 games in the outfield, most of which have come in center, 210 games at shortstop, and 16 games at second base. However, since joining the Brewers, Jones has played a vast majority of his games, both in the Cactus League and with the Triple-A Nashville Sounds in the outfield. In fact, Jones only appeared in the outfield during his two-week stint with the Sounds to start the year, so it's unsurprising that his assignment will be more time on the outfield grass in the big leagues.

Jones' switch-hitting abilities give him a better chance of earning opportunities with the Brewers, but he faces a crowded outfield group to compete with in Milwaukee. Alongside Sal Frelick and Garrett Mitchell, who start most games for the Brewers, especially when a right-hander is on the mound, Jones will be competing for playing time with Blake Perkins, Brandon Lockridge, and Luis Matos.

Though Murphy did clarify that a majority of Jones' opportunities will come as an outfielder, he did make note of his versatility. Should the trio group of Joey Ortiz, David Hamilton, and Luis Rengifo struggle, Jones could slot into the infield picture as a short-term fix, assuming he comes out of the gates hot during his third stint in the big leagues.

Tonight, the Brewers will roll with an outfield group of Matos, Mitchell, and Frelick (from left to right), but don't be surprised if Jones is subbed in either as a pinch runner -- he has great speed on the basepaths -- or as a late-game defensive replacement.

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