Garrett Mitchell transferred to 60-day IL among other moves

Joey Wiemer is back in the big leagues.

The Milwaukee Brewers made a flurry of roster moves this morning, as they optioned Andruw Monasterio to Triple-A Nashville, put J.B. Bukauskas on the 15-day IL, transferred Garrett Mitchell to the 60-day IL, recalled Wiemer, and selected LHP Jared Koenig.

OF Joey Wiemer recalled from Triple-A Nashville.

LHP Jared Koenig selected from Triple-A Nashville.

INF Andruw Monasterio optioned to Triple-A Nashville.

RHP JB Bukauskas placed on the 15-day injured list with a right lat strain.

OF Garrett Mitchell transferred to the 60-day… pic.twitter.com/bPzcCifxYo
— Milwaukee Brewers (@Brewers) April 14, 2024

Wiemer, who struggled at the plate but was fantastic in the outfield for the Brewers last season, is not off to an especially promising start with the bat, as he is hitting just .220/.328/.360 with one home run through 13 games in Nashville. The injury to Christian Yelich does not seem serious enough to warrant an IL stint, but the Brewers must not believe he’ll be playing for a couple more days if they determined that they wanted another outfielder on the roster. Yelich remains out for today’s game, as Wiemer gets the start in left field, with Blake Perkins in center and Sal Frelick in right as Jackson Chourio gets the day off.

Monasterio, struggling to find playing time with Brice Turang and Joey Ortiz both playing well, was off to a rough start. So far this year he’s played in only four games and has only nine plate appearances, in which he is 0-for-7 with two walks. The move will allow him to get some regular playing time at Triple-A, and I imagine we haven’t seen the last of Monasterio with the Brewers this season. Oliver Dunn’s emergence as a viable infield option seems to have made Monasterio expendable for now; we could also see Frelick at third in certain matchups, but I wouldn’t expect that unless this arrangement remains long term.

Bukauskas pitched in Baltimore yesterday and there was no indication after the game that he had been injured, but he was placed on the 15-day IL with a lat strain (Update: manager Pat Murphy said Monday afternoon that the injury was actually to his triceps). He was off to an excellent start: through six innings this season, the 27-year-old Bukauskas had allowed one run on three hits and a walk with six strikeouts. Taking his place will be lefty Jared Koenig, who has been sharp in limited duty at Nashville: through 4 ²⁄₃ innings he has allowed one run while striking out eight.

To make room on the 40-man roster for Koenig, Garrett Mitchell has been transferred to the 60-day IL. Mitchell was targeting a return around June 1, so the transfer to the 60-day IL does not affect that timetable.