PHOENIX -- The look of the Brewers' season-opening starting rotation will be decided upon when a couple of current uncertainties are resolved, including whether Jimmy Nelson is ready to begin the season on time.

If he isn't, a number of candidates, including Sunday’s starter, Corbin Burnes, will be considered for the spot. Burnes allowed five runs, two of which were earned, over four innings to the Cubs, in a game the Brewers won, 7-5.

As is the case for all pitchers throughout the Cactus League, Burnes' final line was credited to two separate elements: the quality of his pitches and the wind and the sun, which often act as a team to wreak havoc on the outfielders.

It's debatable whether Ben Gamel would have had a better chance to catch Cristhian Adames' fly ball to deep right center with the bases loaded in the third inning had the sun not been so bright, or the breeze quite that strong. The ball hung up for a while, zigged, and then zagged, and by the time it dropped, the Cubs were on their way to clearing the bases and taking a 5-0 lead.

These random plays in Spring Training don't usually faze pitchers, and that was the case for Burnes, who instead focused on what was important to him -- throwing all of his pitches, working on the curveball and making sure he pitched efficiently to stay in the game for four innings.

"The second inning, we led off every batter with [the curveball], stole some strikes and then threw it again the [fourth] inning," Burnes said. "I'm still trying to throw everything right now, but the goal was to get up and down four times, get up to 60 pitches, mix everything in."

Burnes, who debuted for the Brewers last July, is viewed by the club as a starting pitcher, even though he cut his teeth last year in the Majors reliever. Beyond rotation lock Jhoulys Chacín and veterans Chase Anderson and Zach Davies, Burnes is part of a depth chart that goes seven deep and also includes young right-handers Freddy Peralta and Brandon Woodruff.

That's made this spring a little different for Burnes, who as a reliever needed mostly just his fastball and slider. This year, he has to break camp confident that his full arsenal of pitches is working.

"That's for sure Corbin's challenge this year -- going through lineups two and three times," manager Craig Counsell said. "He did start throwing curveballs as the season went on, so that was added. There's a two-seam fastball that's been added that he played around with a little bit last year as well. There's a changeup that's still coming, I think, and can be a pitch for him. All the ingredients are there for Corbin to have a lot of success."

Worth noting
• Ryan Braun started the Brewers' game with the Cubs at his usual position in left field for the first time this spring. It was just the second Cactus League game for Braun, who served as the DH in his spring debut on March 8 vs. the D-backs. Braun was 0-for-2, popping to second in his first at-bat and grounding to short on a hard-hit ball in his second at-bat. He was replaced defensively by Corey Ray in the fifth.

• The Cubs-Brewers game drew 9,989 fans to American Family Fields of Phoenix, a sellout.

• Top catching prospect Payton Henry recorded his first base hit of the spring after starting off 0-for-11, doubling off Cubs reliever Wynton Bernard to lead off the seventh. Orlando Arcia and Ben Gamel logged their first home runs of the spring in this game, while Tyler Saladino recorded his second homer.

Up next
The Brewers will host the White Sox on Monday at American Family Fields of Phoenix at 3:05 p.m. CT. Chacin, who has yielded one run over four innings this spring, will make his third Cactus League appearance for Milwaukee. The White Sox will counter with right-hander Ivan Nova.