Notes: Lauer optioned; Yelich, Hiura updates

MILWAUKEE – On paper it was a demotion for Eric Lauer when the Brewers optioned the left-hander to Triple-A Nashville on Saturday, but manager Craig Counsell said it sets up Lauer to play a more prominent role in the weeks ahead.

Lauer was sent down after pitching three innings of Friday’s loss to the Braves at American Family Field and replaced -- temporarily, by the sound of it -- by a fresh arm in Hoby Milner, another lefty who came to the Brewers as a non-roster invitee to Spring Training.

“You know, if you look at the schedule we've got some off days coming up, so there may be some active transactions here in the next couple of days,” Counsell said. “Eric, he'll start probably mid-week this week in Nashville. At some point, we're going to use six starters again when we get into a stretch of the season without off days, so Eric will definitely be in the mix for that.

“I think Eric's in a really good place. We want to keep him starting. I think that's important, just because we know at this point, he's kind of sitting on that next spot and we know we're going to need that frequently. So, I think keeping him lengthened out [is important].”

Lauer began the season with the alternate training site squad but was called up to make two starts while Corbin Burnes and Brett Anderson were on the injured list. Now that both of those pitchers are back in the rotation, Lauer had made his last two appearances out of the bullpen, including Friday’s outing which included back-to-back home runs.

Milner will already be the 42nd player used this season by the Brewers, who played their 40th game on Saturday. He is a 30-year-old who averages just below 88 mph with a sinker and also throws a curveball while relying on command and deception. He can be optioned to the Minors.

And he’s off to a good start to 2021. Milner pitched eight times for the Brewers in the Cactus League without allowing a run, then struck out four in two hitless innings during his brief time at Triple-A Nashville.

“Left-handed, right-handed, I think he's throwing the ball as well as anybody out of the bullpen down there,” Counsell said.

Good early signs for Yelich, Hiura
It was a very good sign when the Triple-A Sounds posted a starting lineup on Saturday afternoon with Christian Yelich's name in it, and not just for that club’s ticket sales.

When Yelich attempted to come off the injured list on May 3, it was clear by the next day that he wasn’t healthy enough to continue, and he went right back on the IL. Now the Brewers are encouraged he is in a better place, having cleared two at-bats and three innings of defense on Friday night and feeling good enough to play again on Saturday, when Yelich worked a pair of walks and hit a flyout to left field while playing six innings of defense.

“That's the whole point of this, is to push him and stress him a little bit and then see where we get with that,” Counsell said. “So, each day is going to be important. I think at the early stages of this, knowing how he feels the next day is important because at this point he's still doing stuff that he hasn't done in a while. … Every day is a little bit more and we'll see how he reacts to it.”

In Nashville, Yelich is a teammate of Keston Hiura, who is back to playing every day following a week and a half away from baseball to clear his mind. In his first two games with the Sounds, Hiura hit as many doubles -- four -- as he had in 26 games with the Brewers while slashing .152/.247/.266.

“We took nine days off, essentially, of game action. Sometimes there's a benefit just to that,” Counsell said. “Just as a reset. Sometimes it takes a little time to unlearn some of the bad stuff you're doing and get it out from your system as you kind of try to rewire yourself, so to speak. That's probably a little extreme to say it like that, but that's essentially what you're trying to do when you're in a slump a little bit, is to get the wires firing right again.

“The time off helped, I think, and it's great to see he's off to a good start. I think that builds confidence and reinforces the belief in what he's doing. That's always a good thing.”

Last call
• Lucas Erceg, who still sits just outside MLB Pipeline’s Top 30 prospects list and is remaking himself this season as a two-way player, made his first career start in Game 2 of Double-A Biloxi’s doubleheader on Friday and was touching 98 mph in his first inning of work, according to Shuckers broadcaster Garrett Greene.

“What I know is that he has power in his arm, a lot,” said Brewers pitcher Freddy Peralta. “I played with him in the Minors and he’d make the runners get close to the base, and then he’d throw hard as he can to the base. And we’re like, ‘Oh, my God.’ This guy can throw 98-100 [mph] easy. He has power.”

• Former Brewers All-Star Ben Sheets and his oldest son, Seaver, celebrated together after Sterlington High School in Monroe, La. won the Class 3A state championship in baseball on Friday. Ben Sheets is an assistant coach for the team and Seaver went 2-for-4 with a double in his final high school game before heading to Auburn University in the fall.