Milwaukee Brewers

The National League playoff field is set after the Milwaukee Brewers clinched the last wild-card spot in the National League on Sunday.

Although Milwaukee lost to the St. Louis Cardinals, it clinched thanks to losses by the Philadelphia Phillies and San Francisco Giants.

It looked as if Milwaukee's run of consecutive playoff appearances would end at two after the team got off to a 13-17 start.

Even though the Brewers didn't exactly catch fire down the stretch, they were able to make the playoffs for the third straight year.

One of the most surprising aspects of Milwaukee's season was the lineup. Christian Yelich is only hitting .205/.356/.430; Keston Hiura didn't build off his successful rookie campaign, posting a .212/.297/.410 slash line.

Four of the Brewers' nine regulars in the lineup have sub-.300 on-base percentage totals (Omar Narvaez, Eric Sogard, Orlando Arcia and Ryan Braun).

Despite those offensive woes, the Brewers found success on the pitching side. Devin Williams has surpassed Josh Hader as their dominant late-inning reliever with a 0.33 ERA, eight hits allowed and 53 strikeouts in 27 innings.

Brandon Woodruff keeps improving every year, posting a career-low 3.05 ERA with 91 strikeouts in 73.2 innings. Corbin Burnes might be even better with a 2.11 ERA in 12 appearances, but a strained oblique that landed him on the injured list this week could keep him from pitching in the playoffs.

There are certainly a lot of questions facing the Brewers heading into the postseason, but manager Craig Counsell has shown a knack for getting the most out of his roster throughout his time with the organization.

Video footage released Thursday appears to show Keyon Lambert entering Miller Park, the home stadium of MLB's Milwaukee Brewers, through an unlocked door in June before riding on a team tractor and allegedly causing an estimated $40,000 in damage.

WISN's Stephen Watson provided the surveillance video:

Watson noted Wisconsin prosecutors previously charged Lambert, a 40-year-old Milwaukee resident, with a felony count of criminal damage to property and a misdemeanor count of disorderly conduct. 

The alleged trespasser is shown trying to write something on the field with the tractor before running the bases backward and then leaving the stadium.

Lambert told police he was attempting to use the tractor to write his name in cursive on the field. After his arrest, he was ordered by a judge "to have no contact with Miller Park" and required to undergo a mental health evaluation.

Miller Park was repaired before the Brewers opened the home portion of their 2020 schedule in early August after play was delayed four months by the coronavirus pandemic.

Lambert is due back in court Oct. 12.

The Milwaukee Brewers are reportedly listening to offers for closer Josh Hader, but only at a "bananas price," a rival executive told Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic. 

Milwaukee remains in playoff contention at 12-15 entering Tuesday but has lost four of its last five games.

Meanwhile, Hader has been nearly flawless this season, allowing no runs or hits in 8.1 innings. He has 13 strikeouts with only five walks during this stretch.

This production is a continuation of an impressive young career for the 26-year-old, who has a 2.32 ERA and 15.3 strikeouts per nine innings across four seasons. He earned All-Star selections in each of his two full seasons and even got Cy Young votes in 2018.

Hader is also under team control through 2023, making this a long-term investment for any team that trades for him.

While there is likely hesitation going into the trade deadline about landing a one-month rental, the left-hander can be an elite closer for multiple years.

It's also why Milwaukee has made him available, with his salary set to go up through arbitration over the next three years. He was already set to make $4.1 million in 2020 before the coronavirus pandemic led to a shortened season.

The Brewers can maintain future financial flexibility while retooling the farm system in one trade.

Milwaukee Brewers president of baseball operations David Stearns said bench coach Pat Murphy suffered a heart attack during Saturday's workout, per Tom Haudricourt of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel.

Murphy was hospitalized, where he had a stent inserted. Stearns said the prognosis for recovery is optimistic. Stearns also said Murphy is expected to fully recover and is also expected to be released in a matter of days.

This is another off-field headline for the Brewers, who haven't even played since Wednesday because their weekend series against the St. Louis Cardinals was postponed because of COVID-19 concerns.

Center fielder Lorenzo Cain announced he will opt out of the remainder of the season amid the pandemic, and left fielder Ryan Braun was placed on the 10-day injured list because of an infected right index finger.

Adam McCalvy of MLB.com spoke with Murphy, 61, about being the oldest member of the Brewers' summer camp before the season started and the higher risk he may be facing amid the COVID-19 pandemic.

"I didn't even think about it," Murphy said. "I respect all of the things going on, and I respect wholeheartedly people who are compromised—young, old, it doesn't matter. Age is truly a number. ... The reality is that the older you are, the more at risk you can be. So I get the risk I'm taking, but I don't let that enter my mind much. I know the Brewers are taking care of us. I didn't know I was the oldest guy. I guess I am on paper. A lot of things on paper aren't what they really are."

Murphy spent time with the San Diego Padres prior to coming to Milwaukee and was the National League West team's interim manager for a stretch of the 2015 campaign.

He also coached at the collegiate level for Notre Dame and Arizona State and managed Brewers manager Craig Counsell at Notre Dame.

On Sunday, the Milwaukee Brewers announced they placed outfielder and first baseman Ryan Braun on the 10-day injured list because of an infected right index finger.

The announcement noted the trip to the IL is retroactive to July 30 and does not yet include a corresponding roster move.  

This news comes after center fielder Lorenzo Cain announced he will opt out of the remainder of the season amid the COVID-19 pandemic.

"With all of the uncertainty and unknowns surrounding our game at this time, I feel that this is the best decision for me, my wife, and our three kids," he said.

There was a time when Braun was unquestionably on the shortlist of the best players in the league. He won the National League MVP in 2011, made five straight All-Star Games from 2008-12 and led the league in home runs in 2012.

However, he hasn't played 150 games in a season since that 2012 campaign, and the 144 he played last year was his highest mark in seven seasons. He was still solid at the plate with a .285/.343/.505 slash line, 22 home runs and 75 RBI, but he wasn't the same force he was in his prime.

The Brewers have not played since Wednesday because their weekend series against the St. Louis Cardinals was postponed due to COVID-19 concerns.

Look for Milwaukee to stick with Justin Smoak and Logan Morrison at first base and some combination of Christian Yelich, Ben Gamel and Avisail Garcia in the outfield while Braun is sidelined.

As the coronavirus continues to have a profound impact on the 2020 Major League Baseball season, Milwaukee Brewers star Lorenzo Cain has opted out of playing.  

Brewers general manager David Stearns issued a statement Saturday about Cain's decision, while Cain later released his own statement, via Mark Feinsand of MLB.com:

In the 10 days since MLB's regular season started, the overwhelming story has been about the COVID-19 cases on multiple teams, which has led to significant changes to the schedule.

ESPN's Jesse Rogers reported Friday that the Miami Marlins were "getting multiple sleeper buses" to transport players and staff members who have tested positive for the virus from Philadelphia, where the team has been quarantined since its season-opening series last weekend, to Miami.

MLB on Tuesday postponed the Phillies' two series against the New York Yankees "out of an abundance of caution."

The Marlins and Phillies haven't played since Sunday.

Per The Athletic's Mark Saxon, the St. Louis Cardinals had three staff members and one player test positive for COVID-19. The Cardinals had announced Friday that two players tested positive for the virus, causing MLB to postpone their game against the Brewers until Sunday.

Per ESPN's Jeff Passan, MLB Commissioner Rob Manfred told MLBPA executive director Tony Clark on Friday that the season could be shut down if positive cases weren't contained.

The season began July 23 and is scheduled to end Sept. 27, leading into an expanded 16-team postseason.

Cain appeared in five of Milwaukee's six games. The 34-year-old hit .333/.429/.389 in 18 at-bats.

Milwaukee Brewers manager Craig Counsel surprised his players Saturday with a video call from their family members on the Jumbotron.

Brock Holt posted about the moment on Instagram.

"Cool surprise from Couns today," the utility player wrote in his caption. "First work day back. A lot of us without our families. Got to see all of them on the big board. They are what matters!"

David Price, who opted out of competing in 2020, responded to the post, "That is awesome!!!"

After the 2020 MLB season was delayed because of the coronavirus, the regular season is now set to begin in late July. Players reported on July 1 and are in the midst of a brief training camp before the start of Spring Training 2.0.

Several players have already announced they will not be competing in the season.

The 2020 MLB season is slated to begin in late July after delays due to the coronavirus, but Milwaukee Brewers star Ryan Braun isn't confident the season will take place. 

"There's still a part of me that isn't quite sure we will actually play games," Braun said, per Arash Markazi of the Los Angeles Times. "I'm optimistic that we will play games, but obviously if we look at what's happening in the country, the COVID numbers are not good. There are a significant number of athletes who have tested positive, which is indicative of the overall numbers in our country right now."

According to Bob Nightengale of USA Today, at least 40 players and team personnel tested positive for COVID-19 even before there was an agreement to restart the season. 

The national numbers also continue to rise, with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reporting over 40,000 new cases in four straight days recently, a trend that hadn't previously occurred since the disease first hit the United States.

Players are set to report for Spring Training 2.0 starting Wednesday with testing taking place 48 hours before they arrive.

Several players have already announced they will opt out, starting with Arizona Diamondbacks pitcher Mike Leake, per Steve Gilbert of MLB.com. The Washington Nationals announced Joe Ross and Ryan Zimmerman will opt out of the season as well, while Colorado Rockies outfielder Ian Desmond explained his decision not to play in a lengthy Instagram post:

Braun said he will play, partially because this year could be his last in the majors.

"I do have three young children, so certainly it's a possibility," he said of retirement. "We'll see how this year goes and see where I'm at physically."

The 36-year-old could be a free agent after this season if the Brewers decline his $15 million mutual option for 2021. He has spent his entire 13-year MLB career in Milwaukee, earning six All-Star selections to go with a Rookie of the Year award and MVP award in 2011.

Milwaukee Brewers veteran outfielder Ryan Braun said in January that the 2020 season could be his last. But given the unique circumstances presented by the COVID-19 pandemic and the 60-game shortened season, he may be rethinking those comments. 

"I would say everything happening in our world, the COVID stuff specifically, certainly changes the dynamic," Braun told Adam McCalvy of MLB.com on Wednesday. "This season will be nothing like a normal baseball season experience. I think that all factors into changing the way I am thinking about things right now."

He added: "I would say based on where I'm at now, there is a higher likelihood that I would be interested in playing another year now than I thought there would be three or four months ago."

Braun, 36, said back in January that he had an added "sense of urgency" to win with the possibility of a looming retirement, per the Associated Press (via ESPN.com):

"I don't take for granted this could be my last year playing baseball. Obviously, there's a sense of urgency every year, but for me, knowing that this could be my last chance ever, it's something that adds to that sense of urgency.

"I feel good about the fact that they've put a team together that should be competitive again. We went to the postseason the past two years. The team that we lost to last year ended up winning the whole thing. It's just about finding a way to get into the postseason and finding a way to get hot at the right time."

The question is whether Milwaukee will bring him back. As McCalvy noted, the 2020 season is the last guaranteed deal in Braun's contract, which has a $15 million mutual option for 2021 that includes a $4 million buyout. 

He's remained productive later in his career, hitting .285 with 22 homers, 75 RBI, 70 runs and 11 stolen bases in 2019. If he stays on that pace—relative to 2020's shortened 60-game season—the Brewers probably wouldn't need to think too hard about bringing him back for one more year, even at his high price tag. 

Keyon Lambert was charged with criminal damage to property and misdemeanor disorderly conduct after he allegedly broke into Milwaukee's Miller Park last week and attempted to carve his name into the grass with a tractor, according to Elliot Hughes of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel.

The joyride left $40,000 in damage.

According to a police report, Lambert said he entered the stadium through an unlocked door and took a tractor "because he had never driven one before and wanted to carve his name into the grass with the tires."

Lambert allegedly damaged the pitcher's mound and left several holes in the field.

According to a Brewers statement, the incident did not have any relation to protests over police brutality and racial discrimination in Milwaukee after the death of George Floyd.