Gennett ejection Friday lands him on bench Saturday

MILWAUKEE -- After expressing regret about the ejection which left his team in a tight spot Friday, and saying he would apologize to the umpire who ejected him, Scooter Gennett began Saturday's game against the Pirates on the Brewers' bench.

"I don't need [an explanation], I know why," Gennett said. "I let my frustrations get the best of me last night, and I apologize. I kind of lost track of how many guys we had left on the bench. That's something I don't really focus on; I focus more on hitting the ball. The one thing I felt worse about was doing that to my team."

What he did was earn an ejection -- the second of his professional career -- in the eighth inning of an eventual 6-2 loss to the Pirates in which manager Ron Roenicke had already employed both of his backup infielders. After plate umpire Mike Estabrook ejected Gennett for smashing his bat after a strikeout, Roenicke was forced to give center fielder Carlos Gomez his first professional appearance on the infield.

The strikeout left Gennett 1-for-13 with six strikeouts through four regular season games. All were Brewers losses.

"He was really frustrated," Roenicke said. "We talked a little about it, and it wasn't just that last at-bat. There were some other things happening, so I felt like he needed it off. It's early in the season, but he's already pressing."

Gennett indicated the problem was pitch selection.

"When I swing at strikes, I'm still good," he said. "They've been exploiting me in of late. I guess I'll just have to stand there and wear them all. That's what I plan on doing when I get that next opportunity."

Asked about the frustration associated with a slow start to the season, Gennett said, "I don't think it's frustrations or pressure or anything like that. I think it's just, I like to swing. I like to hit the ball. I'm not used to being pitched around. I don't like to make any excuses, but I'm used to batting in a different spot. I just have to make those adjustments necessary to do my job. I haven't done a good job at my job the last four days, so with that being said, I have to do a better job of swinging at strikes."

It was an emotional two days for Gennett, who spent Thursday's off-day getting married in Milwaukee. His new wife, Kelsey, and many family and friends were in the stands on Friday.

"It was pretty crazy how that works," Gennett said. "I had the best day of my life, and then probably the worst day of my life the next day."