The Milwaukee Brewers are heading into Wrigley Field with the best record in Major League Baseball, and they’re bringing Abner Uribe back with them.
Milwaukee activated Uribe ahead of its series against the Chicago Cubs, a timely boost for a club that has won five straight series since getting swept by the Padres in San Diego a couple of weeks ago. The Brewers dropped Sunday’s home game to the Texas Rangers, but they had already taken the first two games of the set and improved to 85-52 on the season.
The timing matters. The Brewers last saw the Cubs on the road, where they swept the series and moved into first place in the National League Central.
Since then, they’ve only widened the gap. Milwaukee now holds an eight-game lead over Chicago, and if it can win at least three of four this week, the division race would be pushed even closer to the finish line.
That possibility gets even more interesting with another three-game series against the Cubs coming next week in Milwaukee.
Uribe’s return gives Pat Murphy another high-leverage arm to deploy. The right-hander has been one of the Brewers’ most reliable relievers, going 4-2 with a 2.05 ERA and six saves in 49 relief appearances. He’s often worked as the setup man for Trevor Megill, though Murphy has also leaned on him in the sixth or seventh inning depending on the matchups in front of him.
To clear a spot for Uribe, Milwaukee placed Bryse Wilson on the 15-day injured list. Wilson has filled a multi-inning role out of the bullpen and has posted a 2.55 ERA in 12 appearances for the Brewers this season after bouncing around earlier in the year.
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