Pina gets good news after MRI on shoulder

ST. LOUIS -- Catcher Manny Piña expressed relief upon rejoining the Brewers on Friday after an MRI of his left shoulder in Milwaukee revealed no structural damage from a collision with Cubs infielder Javier Báez on Wednesday.
Pina and Baez tangled at second base in the Brewers' loss at Wrigley Field, and the Milwaukee backstop said he felt movement in his shoulder when Baez tumbled over him. Two days later, Pina took about 20 swings in the batting cage at Busch Stadium and said that while he was still sore, he hoped to be back in game shape by Saturday night.
"Nothing bad," Pina said. "No damage, nothing broke. … I was scared, man. I was scared a lot."
The encouraging MRI was good news for the Brewers, since the only other catcher on the team's full 40-man roster besides the current big league duo of Pina and Erik Kratz is Jacob Nottingham, who remains on the Triple-A disabled list with a fractured wrist. Calling up a reinforcement like Jett Bandy or Christian Bethancourt from Colorado Springs would require freeing a spot.
Like Pina, outfielder Ryan Braun was in day-to-day limbo after his own exit in Wednesday's loss to the Cubs. Braun, who has battled back and rib cage tightness intermittently all season, tweaked his right side trying to make a sliding catch and had to exit in the fifth inning.

Braun took batting practice on Friday and expected to have a better feel for his status afterward.
"He certainly was playing very well. With the injuries, we just have to try to stay ahead of that with him," Brewers manager Craig Counsell said.
Davies' next step?
Right-hander Zach Davies, still on the disabled list with lower back stiffness, was en route to St. Louis on Friday night after he was unable to clear the fourth inning of his latest Minor League rehab start. Pitching for Colorado Springs at Iowa, Davies was charged with four earned runs on three hits and five walks with two strikeouts. He was lifted at the 79-pitch mark amid a six-run rally.
Asked what was next for Davies, Counsell said, "After he gets here and we talk to him, we'll tell you about that."
Counsell said coaches and club officials had watched video of the outing.
"There were some good signs and some not-so-good signs," Counsell said. "The walks were not a good sign, and he finished the outing early. He didn't complete -- his pitches were in the 70s. But we watched the tape and his stuff was very crisp in the first couple of innings. It didn't end well, and the walks are obviously not something that's characteristic of him."
Another rehabbing Brewers pitcher, reliever Matt Albers, had better results on Thursday for Double-A Biloxi. He struck out five batters over two perfect innings, giving him three scoreless innings so far on a rehab assignment for a hamstring injury.
Albers will pitch again Saturday, Counsell said, "and then we'll see where we're at."