NEW YORK ¨C The final player to crack the Brewers¡¯ Opening Day roster was all packed up and ready to make the 25-hour drive from Phoenix to his Northwest Indiana home, which was to be a pit stop on the way to beginning the season at Triple-A Nashville.
Fortunately for right-hander Chad Patrick, his travel plans were about to change.
¡°I got a text and said I couldn¡¯t leave until the final roster was locked down,¡± Patrick said.
The next day, Patrick was in the weight room when Brewers clubhouse boss Tony Migliaccio texted asking whether he planned to ship his car to Milwaukee. If that wasn¡¯t enough of a clue, Brewers manager Pat Murphy appeared in a golf cart on the back fields to pick Patrick up.
Patrick's Minor League teammates cheered as the Indiana native, who won the International League¡¯s triple crown by leading the league in wins (14), ERA (2.90) and strikeouts (145) last season but didn¡¯t get called up to Milwaukee from Triple-A Nashville, gladly accepted the invitation to the big leagues. Since he¡¯d been optioned to Minor League camp in early March, this qualified as a nice surprise.
¡°You just think back to being in high school as a little kid,¡± Patrick said. ¡°I only graduated with, like, 81 people. I went to a small high school. You try to think back on how your journey started and who got you here, who helped you along the way. It¡¯s very fulfilling.¡±
Patrick was one of six Brewers players set to soak in his first Major League Opening Day against the Yankees on Thursday, with fellow pitchers Jared Koenig, Elvin Rodriguez, Connor Thomas, infielder Vinny Capra and outfielder Isaac Collins.
The roster was whittled down to 26 by the time the team took the field for a Yankee Stadium workout on Wednesday, with Patrick taking the spot of veteran left-hander Jose Quintana, who¡¯d agreed to accept being optioned to the Minors so he can complete his buildup after signing in the middle of Spring Training.
With only three spots in the starting rotation spoken for at the moment, Patrick¡¯s ability to pitch multiple innings could prove critical. He could even start Monday¡¯s home opener against the Royals if he¡¯s not needed over the weekend in New York.
¡°This kid pitched his way onto the team,¡± Murphy said.
Murphy has been pointing out in recent days that injuries have cost the Brewers seven of their top 13 pitchers to start the year, in his view -- Aaron Ashby, Robert Gasser, DL Hall, Tobias Myers, Brandon Woodruff and relievers J.B. Bukauskas and Nick Mears. With reliever Abner Uribe on the Opening Day roster, Murphy is now expanding his count to eight of 13.
Uribe is healthy, but he wasn¡¯t at Yankee Stadium for the workout because he is subject to a four-game suspension levied last season. The Brewers think that Friday¡¯s off-day makes this the best time to navigate that suspension without stressing the rest of the staff.
One non-roster invitee made Milwaukee¡¯s cut: first baseman Jake Bauers, who is back with the Brewers after delivering some big late-season moments a year ago. The team designated for assignment outfielder Brewers Hicklen to clear space on a full 40-man roster. Utility man Capra, the most prominent of the players who came to camp out of options, also won a spot and was in line to start at third base on Opening Day, since the Yankees are scheduled to start a left-hander in Carlos Rod¨®n.
Here's how the roster was shaping up:
Catchers (2): William Contreras, Eric Haase
Infielders (6): Jake Bauers, Vinny Capra, Oliver Dunn, Rhys Hoskins, Joey Ortiz, Brice Turang
Outfielders (5): Jackson Chourio, Isaac Collins, Sal Frelick, Garrett Mitchell, Christian Yelich
Starting pitchers (3): Freddy Peralta, Nestor Cortes, Aaron Civale
Relief pitchers (10): Trevor Megill (closer), Joel Payamps, Jared Koenig, Bryan Hudson, Tyler Alexander, Elvin Rodriguez, Connor Thomas, Elvis Peguero, Chad Patrick, Abner Uribe
Injured list (6): Aaron Ashby (15-day), Robert Gasser (60-day), DL Hall (60-day), Nick Mears (15-day), Tobias Myers (15-day), Brandon Woodruff (15-day)