The Brewers’ roster squeeze is coming fast.
Milwaukee has spent much of August piecing together an infield that kept changing shape. Cooper Pratt landed on the injured list with a hamstring strain, Brice Turang missed time with left knee pain, and Joey Ortiz worked through a lingering upper back issue that cost him several games. That shortage forced the Brewers to bring in Jihwan Bae and Jonathan Ornelas, while Andrew Vaughn even filled in at third base for multiple games.
Now the club is getting healthier, and that means somebody has to lose a spot.
Pratt could be back as soon as tonight, Sal Frelick is closing in on a return from the shoulder strain that sent him to the IL after the first game of the second half, and JoJo Romero is aiming to start a rehab assignment soon after missing the last month following a midseason emergency appendectomy. With those players pushing toward returns before rosters expand on September 1, Milwaukee is heading toward some short-term cuts.
Jonathan Ornelas looks like the most immediate casualty. Milwaukee made the rare move to add him after the trade deadline, and he arrived because Bae wasn’t holding up as the temporary infield answer.
Ornelas, whom Pat Murphy used to call Johnny Rockets back when he played against the Brewers manager’s son in youth baseball, has played in all three games since the Brewers acquired him on Saturday evening. But with Ortiz and Turang back and Pratt expected to rejoin the club for Wednesday night’s game against the Seattle Mariners, Ornelas may not last much longer.
If Pratt’s rehab start last night went as reported, Ornelas could be designated for assignment in the coming hours.
Brandon Lockridge is in a different spot, but the pressure is the same. He started the 2026 season well before missing nearly three months after his knee hit the unpadded part of the foul-territory wall at American Family Field.
While he was out, Milwaukee extended Luis Lara and then called him up, and Lara has since taken the edge in playing time even after Lockridge returned. With Frelick nearing a comeback, Lockridge appears to be the likeliest outfielder to get bumped.
The good news for him: he still has minor league options, so a move would send him to Triple-A rather than expose him to waivers.
Bryse Wilson may be the easiest bullpen arm to lose once Milwaukee starts getting pitching back, too. He’s already been designated for assignment this month, though he has still offered value at the back end of the bullpen this season and in previous Brewers stints in 2023 and 2024.
Romero is the first big reinforcement on deck, and if his bullpen work and live batting practice keep progressing, he could begin a rehab assignment as soon as next week. Abner Uribe, who went on the injured list on August 14 retroactive to August 11, has already resumed bullpen sessions.
If Uribe is ready before September 1, Wilson could be the odd man out again.
In Other News...
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The Brewers had no trouble taking care of the Mariners in a historic 22-0 rout, but the biggest follow-up for Milwaukee came away from the scoreboard. Joey Ortiz was part of the offensive surge, going 2-for-4 with three runs scored and a walk, and he stayed in the game through the final out as the club rolled to one of its most lopsided wins in recent memory.
Even so, Pat Murphy said Ortiz is dealing with a twisted ankle, leaving Milwaukee to watch a position that already has some uncertainty. Starting shortstop Cooper Pratt is on the injured list with a hamstring strain, though he has begun a rehab assignment, so the Brewers are in the awkward spot of tracking one shortstop's recovery while monitoring another's health at the same time. [Read more 🡒]
Brewers Trade Is Already Raising Questions For One Frustrating Reason
The Brewers have already seen one of their recent bullpen gambles take on a little extra intrigue. When Milwaukee sent reliever Mark Manfredi to Colorado in the deal for Antonio Senzatela, it was the kind of move teams make hoping the long view will sort it out, with one arm helping elsewhere and the return piece eventually settling in.
Instead, the early read has been messy on both sides. Manfredi has been moved onto the Rockies major league roster in short order, while Senzatela has also struggled to find his footing in Milwaukee, leaving the trade looking less like an immediate solution and more like another reminder that deadline-style decisions do not always reveal their value right away. [Read more 🡒]