Keith Allison KeithAllisonPhoto.com
Curtis Granderson, who the Brewers acquired from the Toronto Blue Jays on Friday, Aug. 31.
Not everyone likes Major League Baseball’s rules regarding roster sizes in September, but the Milwaukee Brewers are certainly going to take advantage of them. From April through August, teams are limited to 25 players on their active roster apart from the days of doubleheaders, when they’re allowed 26. On Saturday, Sept. 1, with the minor league season winding down, teams can call up any player on their 40-man roster and flood their bullpens and benches with extra options. This year, the Brewers went from 25 players on Friday to 34 members of the active roster on the Sunday before Labor Day, with more anticipated once AAA Colorado Springs finishes their postseason run.
Those additions include the newest Brewers—outfielder Curtis Granderson and pitchers Xavier Cedeño and Gio Gonzalez—who were acquired in three separate trades Friday. It also includes several longtime Brewers who were waiting for September in the minor leagues: outfielders Keon Broxton and Domingo Santana and pitchers Corey Knebel, Zach Davies and Brandon Woodruff.
With 15 pitchers available, Craig Counsell should never be lacking for options on the mound. Adding Cedeño gives him an extra lefty to use in platoon situations (a role Dan Jennings has struggled in recently), and he has plenty of arms to use in long relief if needed: Jordan Lyles and Corbin Burnes have already demonstrated an ability to do that when called upon, and Woodruff joined them in that role with four shutout innings on Sunday.
On the position-player side, however, is where the Brewers really face the widest array of possibilities. After playing much of the season with (at most) five position players on his bench, Counsell will now have at least nine non-starters available most days. Here are some of the ways he can use that flexibility.
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Trading Offense for Defense
Following the additions of Mike Moustakas and Jonathan Schoop earlier this season, the Brewers showed some willingness to put a strong offensive lineup on the field while sacrificing some defense, playing Travis Shaw at second base for the first time in his professional career and Schoop at shortstop. With newfound roster flexibility, Counsell could have it both ways in the same game: He could start Shaw at second, Schoop at short and Eric Thames in the outfield, for example, but swap the three out for Broxton, Orlando Arcia and Hernan Perez to help the pitching staff protect late leads. Or, they could do the inverse—go defense-heavy and add all three to the list of big bats available in late inning situations.
The Lefty Line Change
If the Brewers are so inclined, they’ll never need to allow a left-handed position player to face a left-handed starting pitcher again: They have right-handed position players for every position with a few to spare on the bench. Similarly, if they’re facing a right-hander that struggles against lefties, they could stack the lineup in that direction with Moustakas, Granderson, Thames, Shaw and Christian Yelich swinging from the left side.
Two of the Brewers’ recent callups, Santana and Tyler Saladino, have been notably better against righties than lefties this season. Conversely, Perez and Lorenzo Cain are among those that have been better against lefties. The Brewers have the flexibility now to mix and match to take advantage of these splits without depleting their bench.
Rest!
Of course, arguably the biggest advantage of an expanded roster is the ability to get players extra days off and, perhaps even more so, get them out of the game early if a game gets out of hand. With nearly a dozen relievers available on any given day and multiple backups at every position, the Brewers should have plenty of opportunities to get their stars off the field in a blowout game.
The Brewers are already getting a little more rest than most teams because of their stretch run off days (they’re off every Thursday in September), but their expanded roster should present them with even more opportunities to keep their top talent fresh and ready for the pennant race and, hopefully, beyond.
