Brewers gain 'pen help as Cravy activated

CINCINNATI -- The Brewers activated one reliever from the disabled list Sunday while another traveled back to Milwaukee with hope of joining the bullpen before season's end.

The active pitcher was Tyler Cravy, who is available again after sitting out 16 days with an impingement in his right elbow. Cravy tested his arm in a pair of mound sessions last week, the most recent on Friday in Cincinnati, before the Brewers activated him from the DL on Sunday morning, a day earlier than previously forecast. He worked around a hit thanks to a pair of strikeouts in a scoreless sixth inning of a 6-3 loss to the Reds on Sunday.

With Cravy active, the Brewers had 10 pitchers in the bullpen on Sunday, including Ariel Pena, who could make a start this week.

Michael Blazek, meanwhile, was on a flight back to Milwaukee, where he will have the cast removed from his right hand on Tuesday. Two days after that will mark four weeks since Blazek and the Brewers discovered he had a fractured bone in that hand, the cause of which remains a mystery.

After the cast is removed, Blazek will undergo an X-ray, which will help determine his next step and whether he has a chance to pitch before the Brewers' season is over. He will rejoin the Brewers in Pittsburgh, where a series begins Thursday.

"Right now, it feels good," Blazek said. "I have good movement in my fingers, and the swelling is down from what I can tell. … It just depends on how the break is doing. They said if it looks good on the X-ray, I can start doing hand exercises and get some movement going. Maybe the following Tuesday, Thursday at the latest, start throwing. That would be two, two and a half weeks of the season left."