Brewers News: Garrett Mitchell To IL, Blake Perkins Recalled To Fill OF Gap

The Milwaukee Brewers placed rookie outfielder Garrett Mitchell on the IL on Wednesday after he suffered an injury late in Tuesday night's game.

In extra innings against the Mariners, Garrett Mitchell was at second base to begin the Brewers half of the inning. A hot ground ball went to first base and Mitchell took off for third. Ty France thought he could get the speedy Mitchell and made the risky throw across the diamond to try to get him.

While they came close to getting him, Mitchell was safe but because he needed to avoid the tag, Mitchell took a headfirst dive and tried to stick his hand on the base, but slid by, trying to hold on, and subluxed his shoulder in the process. The Brewers removed him from the game the next half inning as he made a throw home and felt some pain.

Garrett Mitchell has gone on the IL with a shoulder injury and Blake Perkins was recalled to take his place.

The Brewers will find out just how serious Mitchell's injury is when they get back to Milwaukee and get him an MRI, but in the meantime, outfielder Blake Perkins gets the call to fill the gap in the grass.

Some may be wondering why Blake Perkins was chosen over one of the Crew's top prospects, Sal Frelick, who nearly made the Opening Day roster. There are a couple of factors.

The first reason is Blake Perkins is already on the 40 man roster while Sal Frelick is not. With Luis Urias already being sent to the 60 day IL, the Brewers would have to cut somebody to make room for Frelick and they don't have to do that with Perkins.

The second reason is that Frelick is dealing with an injury himself. He apparently jammed his thumb on a slide late last night as well for the Sounds. If it wasn't for the injury, perhaps the Brewers would've gone with Frelick and simply found a way to create a 40 man spot, but the jammed thumb on top of the 40 man issue makes it an easier choice for the Brewers to go with Perkins.

Perkins has been doing well in Nashville, hitting .292 on the season so far. Still, we may not be seeing a ton of Perkins in the starting lineup. Joey Wiemer is a capable centerfielder and he could slide over, allowing Brian Anderson to see more time in right field, and get more time for players like Mike Brosseau and Owen Miller in the infield.

Is there an update on when Tyrone Taylor could return?

Ideally, the Brewers would like to have Tyrone Taylor back from his sprained elbow to help cover the outfield in the wake of Mitchell's injury. While he's still out, Taylor is getting close to a return.

Taylor is playing in games in extended spring training in Arizona and will soon head out on a rehab assignment with Triple-A Nashville. He missed all of spring training with his injury and may need a slightly longer rehab assignment. But he's on the mend and will hopefully be back soon.