Brice Turang’s bat and glove have made him one of the driving forces behind Milwaukee’s 76-48 start, and the Brewers got a little more clarity on his knee situation before Sunday’s finale with the Dodgers.
The 26-year-old second baseman has been in the middle of another strong season for a team that sits in first place in the National League Central and holds the NL’s No. 1 seed. Through 115 games, Turang is hitting .268/.360/.450 with an .810 OPS, 16 home runs and 76 RBIs. He has also been aggressive and effective on the bases, going 16-for-21 in stolen base attempts.
What really pushes his value over the top, though, is the defense. Turang has logged 1,011 ⅓ innings at second and has posted 11 outs above average and 11 fielding run value. Those numbers rank third among second basemen, and he’s also the best hitter in that group.
The Brewers have been without him lately because of what the team has called “left knee discomfort.” His last appearance came Wednesday in San Diego, when he went 1-for-5 with a walk and an RBI before sitting out the rest of the series.
There was a positive update Sunday. Adam McCalvy of MLB.com reported that Turang has been improving and will receive treatment Sunday and Monday. Milwaukee has an off day Monday, and Turang could be back in the lineup as soon as Tuesday against the Seattle Mariners.
Brice Turang says he’s continuing to improve after testing his knee yesterday. He’ll get more treatment today and tomorrow on the off day before hopefully returning to the lineup Tuesday against the Mariners.
In Turang’s absence, Milwaukee has turned to David Hamilton and Jonathan Ornelas at second base. Ornelas, who was called up Saturday, went 0-for-3 and is set to start there and hit ninth in Sunday’s game. Hamilton has provided more offense, going 2-for-6 with two walks, an RBI and a run scored on Thursday and Friday before pinch-hitting for Andrew Vaughn on Saturday and striking out.
Milwaukee is hoping Turang is ready for that upcoming home series against the Mariners. For now, the Brewers will try to finish the West Coast trip with a series win over Los Angeles while one of their most important players continues working his way back.
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