Brewers send Suter to DL, recall Wilkerson
Left-hander (forearm strain) has lingering discomfort after Monday start
MILWAUKEE -- Brewers left-hander Brent Suter made an unexpected trip to the 10-day disabled list Friday with a forearm strain and won't start as scheduled on Saturday against the Braves. Right-hander Aaron Wilkerson was recalled from Triple-A Colorado Springs and will start that game instead.
Suter said he developed tightness near his left elbow in the first inning of his most recent outing against the Twins on Monday, when he lasted five innings and surrendered five earned runs on nine hits. He told the team's athletic trainers and underwent treatment, but the discomfort lingered and he was unable to throw his between-starts bullpen session.
"We saw the doc and he was like, 'Let's just skip a start,'" Suter said. "Disappointment, for sure. But I'll try to come back stronger. Our team is gelling so well right now that you want to be a part of it."
Suter aims to rejoin the rotation in Pittsburgh during the Brewers' final series before the All-Star break, but the club will be cautious. Forearm strains have been known to lead to more serious elbow injuries.
Initial tests, however, indicate the ligaments in Suter's elbow are sound, he said.
"You're always cautious when a pitcher has a forearm injury, but at this point it's a minor injury," manager Craig Counsell said. "I think it's important we don't let it become something big. That's why we're putting him on the DL."
Suter is 8-5 with a 4.53 ERA in 16 starts and two relief appearances covering 93 1/3 innings.
His replacement, Wilkerson, made two big league starts for the Brewers last season and was briefly in the bullpen last weekend in Cincinnati. He allowed five runs in his first inning of work in a loss to the Reds, then bounced back to pitch two more scoreless innings and was sent back to Triple-A.
For the SkySox this season, Wilkerson has a 2.08 ERA in 34 2/3 innings.
"I'll tell you, as we're mapping out this next week, especially with that doubleheader [on July 14 in Pittsburgh], there are going to be a lot of guys involved," Counsell said. "We're going to need pitching help, for sure."
More back woes for Davies
Right-hander Zach Davies, whose comeback from a right shoulder injury was scuttled by lower back pain, had another setback in a throwing session and will be further delayed, Counsell said.
"The first part of his throwing went well, and then he felt it at some point at the end of his session," Counsell said. "We're going to have to take a more conservative route with him and just get him back to pain-free.
"It wasn't something minor -- a spasm, so to speak. It's probably something a little more that we're going to have to get out of there."