Burnes gives Crew bulk -- and bunches of K's

In a season where everything is different, some things haven’t changed for Corbin Burnes. He still has his eye on the rotation. The Brewers envision him in that rotation -- someday. And so far this season, Burnes has been absorbing his share of innings, like a starting pitcher.

The only difference is Burnes has been coming into games in the middle, not the beginning. And that’s where the Brewers need him right now.

Burnes was dominant in that role on Saturday night in the Brewers’ 4-1 loss to the Reds at Miller Park, striking out eight over 5 1/3 innings in relief of lefty starter Brett Anderson.

• Box score

Burnes had a whopper of a spot to work out of upon entering the game. The bases were loaded, and a red-hot Nick Castellanos was at the plate. Castellanos, who started the night leading all Major Leaguers in slugging percentage and OPS, struck out on a foul tip, unable to connect with a 97 mph heater.

“That was a big, tough spot to come into,” Brewers manager Craig Counsell said. “He made some really good pitches on a really dangerous hitter. He pitched great. We extended him a little more, and the fact that he's off to a good start to the season is a real bright spot for us.”

The Brewers have remained measured about their long-term plans for Burnes. Counsell has been careful to temper expectations publicly about the 25-year-old right-hander’s prospects to join the rotation, which is understandable, given how much Burnes struggled last season.

But the end goal is no secret. Burnes has an explosive fastball and an arsenal of pitches befitting a starting pitcher, and that’s where he’ll likely end up. The timing of it is the only thing that is still unresolved.

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Given the unusual circumstances of the COVID-19 pandemic and this abbreviated season, the Brewers probably aren’t in a rush to pigeonhole Burnes into a particular role, especially since he’s shown he can adapt quickly.

“I want Corbin to be extended,” Counsell said. “And, as we move on, he could end up starting some games. Right now, where we're at, with all the starters not really extended, we're going to have some days where we're almost splitting games. You saw with Freddy [Peralta] the other night, and with Corbin tonight.”

The uncertainty of a season that has been upended at times by postponements has forced the manager to operate with an eye on depth and versatility, rather than assign concrete roles that could be dismantled at any moment.

That’s why the Brewers have relied on Burnes in a piggybacking role, where two starters split up the innings in a single game. This has become more common practice this year, given the number of starting pitchers who are still being stretched out after a short Summer Camp.

That’s where Burnes comes in – he knows what day he’s pitching, just like a starter would. He just doesn’t know exactly when he’ll enter the game.

Burnes, who threw 77 pitches in this outing, knew ahead of time that he would follow Anderson. The veteran lefty started the season on the injured list and is still building innings. For now, it’s assumed Anderson won’t be pitching deep into games.

Once Burnes was called on to finish the fourth inning, he set an intention to also finish the game.

“Hopefully, the game allowed that,” Burnes said. “It just so happened to work that way tonight.”

Burnes retired seven batters before he allowed his first baserunner. He walked Kyle Farmer to lead off the seventh and yielded an RBI triple to Shogo Akiyama, but that was as far as the Reds would go. Castellanos struck out, and Avisaíl García, after fielding a fly ball from Joey Votto, made a perfect throw home to nab Akiyama and complete a double play.

In the ninth, Burnes issued a two-out walk to Akiyama and hit Castellanos with a pitch, but he struck out Votto to end the frame.

Counsell praised Burnes’ work this year, noting the progress he’s made from last season in developing and executing pitches.

“He’s just honed in on what he's doing, and he has the ability to do a little bit more,” Counsell said. “Last year, frankly, he was just one dimensional. The league kind of sat on the one dimension. I think he's got more weapons now. He feels comfortable with them. And it's got him off to a good start.”