MILWAUKEE -- Count infielder Eric Sogard among the players enjoying the crowd noise pumped through Miller Park’s sound system this week.

The Brewers played their first handful of scrimmages last week, during the day and in a silent stadium. On Tuesday they moved to a night schedule for the “Blue-Gold Series,” and the entertainment staffers began using the software supplied by Major League Baseball to all 30 teams. Controlled by a touchpad, it includes 75 sounds and effects that were originally recorded at Major League games for use in the video game "MLB The Show."

• Part work, part fun: Blue-Gold WS has it all 

Some are ambient, like the hum of a crowd anticipating a first pitch. Some are reactionary, such as the cheers when Omar Narváez homered on Tuesday night, or the boos that surprised Christian Yelich when he stepped to the plate on Monday. Sideline reporter Sophia Minnaert received intelligence that the timing of that sound test was orchestrated by a mischievous teammate, Ryan Braun.

“I tell you what, the crowd noise has really made a difference,” Sogard said. “As players, most of us aren't really searching the crowd for people, but hearing that makes you feel like there's people there. You're still focused on the game, but that noise is very helpful. I could tell the first few scrimmages with pure silence were tough for some guys.”

Manager Craig Counsell believes the same. As he sees it, it’s not good for players on the field to hear every dugout conversation. And he believes the umpires will appreciate that not everything said is picked up on television and radio broadcasts.

Before the sound effects were put in play, Sogard said, “You could hear the other dugout talking, and it was kind of awkward. I think that little bit of noise helped step up the level for some guys, for sure.”

Making the most of family time
Sogard and his wife, Kaycee, were together much more than expected this spring after baseball was paused due to the coronavirus pandemic. That proved especially valuable since they adopted a son, Rye, on March 11, mere days before Spring Training was put on hold.

The Sogards have five children now, all 6 years old and younger. Two were adopted within a year’s time; daughter Leyla in April 2019, and Rye in March.

“It was absolutely amazing, obviously, just being at home during that time and spending some summertime at home and being able to use our pool, which I feel like we rarely get to use,” Sogard said. “Last year when we adopted Leyla, I only got to see her one or two days, I think, for the first month or so she was with us. Adopting our second baby, Rye, being able to be there on a daily basis and just spend all that time with the kids was truly a blessing.

“Obviously, I missed playing baseball, but I couldn’t have found anything better to do with my team other than spending some time with family, which was great.”

The Sogard kids are quite popular on social media. Just this week, son Knix helped remove his sister Saydee’s loose tooth with a bat and ball.

The Brewers are expected to platoon Sogard with right-handed-hitting Jedd Gyorko at third base. Sogard is coming off a career year in which he posted a 115 wRC+ for the Blue Jays and Rays.

“It’s a little different than I think a normal Opening Day, with all the delays and changes we’ve had going on,” Sogard said. “We’re still very excited to get going. Maybe a little more excited than normal because of everything we’ve gone through the past couple of months, the delays and the status of the country.”

Broadcast schedule set; Uecker to call Opening Day
As expected, with no fans in the stands to begin the season, all 60 of the Brewers’ scheduled games will air on radio and television in 2020, the club announced on Thursday in conjunction with its broadcast partners.

• Uecker set for 50th year at mic: 'I'm happy'

At the moment, the plan calls for Brewers broadcasters to call all games -- home and away -- from the broadcast booths at Miller Park, which have been outfitted with extra monitors. Bob Uecker, in his 50th season calling games on radio for his hometown team, said he plans to work only the home games, but there is one notable exception: The Brewers’ road Opening Day contest against the Cubs.

Radio games will air on the Brewers Radio Network. Televised games will air mostly on Fox Sports Wisconsin (58 games), with the other two airing on FOX as exclusive national broadcasts. In addition, Telemundo will air Spanish-language telecasts of four Sunday home games.

The Brewers’ exhibition game at the White Sox on Wednesday will also air on both radio and TV.

Opening Day opponent set
Counsell still hasn’t officially named Brandon Woodruff the Brewers’ Opening Day starter, but Cubs manager David Ross revealed his plans for the first two games on Thursday. Kyle Hendricks will start against the Brewers on Opening Day, followed by Yu Darvish the next day. A longtime nemesis of the Brewers, left-hander Jose Quintana, will be sidelined to start the season following surgery for a laceration on his left thumb. He was hurt while washing dishes.