Despite an offseason that featured the departures of manager Craig Counsell, ace Corbin Burnes, and dominant reliever Josh Hader, the Milwaukee Brewers have gotten off to a hot start this season, sitting at 21-14 and tied with the Chicago Cubs for first place in the NL Central.
Not only did Milwaukee lose those pieces, but they’ve also been without 2018 NL MVP and two-time All-Star outfielder Christian Yelich for the past few weeks.
Yelich was put on the 10-day injured list on April 16 with a low back strain, but help is on the way for the Brewers. The team announced that Yelich will be activated before Wednesday’s game against the Kansas City Royals and return to the starting lineup.
Infielder Tyler Black, who made his major league debut in Milwaukee’s 8-2 win over the Tampa Bay Rays on April 30, was optioned to Triple-A Nashville in a corresponding move.
Yelich has appeared in just 11 games for the Brewers this year, but the 32-year-old slugger was effective at the plate in his limited time, hitting .333 with five home runs and reaching base in all 11 games.
Since being acquired from the Miami Marlins before the 2018 season, Yelich has been a force at the plate, leading the league in batting average in the 2018 and 2019 seasons and nearly capturing back-to-back National League MVP awards, winning in 2018 and finishing second behind Cody Bellinger in the 2019 voting.