David

Hamilton

With Cooper Pratt finally up and Joey Ortiz hitting of late, it might be more of a platoon/bench role for Hamilton as he returns from his hamstring injury. Hamilton is hitting .240/.317/.333 with 18 stolen bases, three homers and a league-leading 10 sacrifice hits.

The speedster was also caught stealing in his first rehab game since landing on the injured list on July 7th. Hamilton had been playing well before the injury, slashing .313/.353/.438 in his last 15 games with four RBI and four steals. With Joey Ortiz also starting to hit well, Hamilton’s imminent return could cut into Cooper Pratt’s playing time.

Hamilton hit the injured list with a mild left hamstring strain just prior to the All-Star break. He should make it back to Milwaukee in a reserve role before the end of the month.

Brewers skipper Pat Murphy expressed optimism that it’ll be a minimum injured list stint for Hamilton, but it might be too early to make that determination. The 28-year-old speedster figures to be out through next week’s All-Star break. Milwaukee brought up top prospect Luis Lara to take his roster spot and provide the club with a versatile bench option with some speed.

Hamilton will be out through at least the break with the strain, which he suffered during Monday’s game against the Cardinals. The 28-year-old will be replaced on the roster by Greg Jones.

Hamilton was pulled with left hamstring tightness during Monday’s game. If the 28-year-old was to be placed on the injured list, Greg Jones — who is on the taxi squad — would likely be the short-term replacement for Hamilton.

Hamilton was lifted for a pinch-runner following a two-run double in the seventh inning that put Milwaukee ahead. He’ll undergo further evaluation to determine the severity of the issue. There should be an update on his status following the contest.

This was a big night for the Brewers-Red Sox January trade with Hamilton having a big game at the plate and Kyle Harrison striking out 11 in a win. Apologies, Red Sox fans. Hamilton got some help on his big night too when he dropped a single in front of Pete Crow-Armstrong in the second inning that squirted under his glove and rolled all the way to the wall. Hamilton was credited with one RBI on a play that turned into a little league three-run homer. He also tripled in the seventh and soon after on a wild pitch. Hamilton remains a decent deep league option when seeking for speed as a part-timer in the Brewers’ lineup.

Hamilton is now 10-for-13 stealing bases. Unfortunately, though he has been walking and running, he just hasn’t done much hitting while seeing time at shortstop and third base for the Brewers. He’s at .229/.331/.248 through 127 plate appearances. It seems like only a matter of time before the Brewers shake up their Hamilton-Joey Ortiz-Luis Rengifo-for-two-spots mix by giving Cooper Pratt or Jett Williams or even Eddys Leonard a try. Williams, for what it’s worth, is playing third base nearly exclusively as of late.

Four hits and no stolen bases. Hamilton would have some fantasy value if he were running as much as usual, but he’s swiped just five bags this year, four of which came in his first four games. Tonight, though, he really had only one chance to run. Twice he had a runner ahead of him on base after his singles, and his final hit came with the Brewers up 12-1 in the ninth.