Joey

Ortiz

Ortiz led off the sixth inning with a triple off of left-hander Sean Manaea then scored on a sacrifice fly off the bat of Cooper Pratt. He also singled in the ballgame. The 28-year-old infielder is having a solid, if unspectacular season at the plate, slashing .250/.316/.382 with seven homers, 38 RBI and nine stolen bases across 336 plate appearances.

Ortiz single-handedly tried to drag the Brewers back into this game after they fell behind 7-0 in the second inning. He hit a two-run home run in the bottom of that inning, a sacrifice fly in the sixth, and an RBI single in the 8th to make it 7-4 before their comeback attempt fell short. With Cooper Pratt back off the injured list, he’s going to be competing with David Hamilton and Andrew Vaughn for third base reps.

Pratt missed the minimum 10 days with his hamstring strain. His return will push Joey Ortiz back over to third base to split time with David Hamilton. Jonathan Ornelas sticks around for now, but he’ll probably be dropped once Sal Frelick is activated.

Ortiz is back in action for the first time since leaving Saturday’s game against Minnesota with neck tightness. The 28-year-old is a welcome return for the Brew Crew, as their infield depth has taken a hit over the last few days.

Ortiz remains out for the third consecutive game due to a lingering neck issue. All indications are that he’s making progress and figures to be available off the bench in this one, if needed. It’ll be Brice Turang handling shortstop with Jihwan Bae getting a look at the keystone. It’s Turang’s first appearance at shortstop since the 2023 campaign.

Ortiz sits for the second straight contest after leaving Saturday’s game against the Twins with neck tightness. David Hamilton draws another start at shortstop in his absence. It’s possible he’ll require a trip to the injured list if he’s not ready to go in a couple days.

The Brewers have a pair of infielders battling minor injuries in Joey Ortiz (neck) and Cooper Pratt (hamstring), plus Jett Williams (wrist) shelved at Triple-A Nashville, so they’ll bring in some insurance to be on the safe side. Bae hit .257/.360/.368 with five homers, 32 RBI and 36 stolen bases in 371 plate appearances with the Mets at Triple-A Syracuse before opting out of his minor league deal.

Ortiz went 0-for-1 with a strikeout before exiting. The 28-year-old has been replaced by David Hamilton. Ortiz will likely undergo further evaluation to determine his status for Sunday and beyond.

Ortiz’s triple was a 343-foot fly to right that should have been caught, but it was a nice day regardless. All three of his balls in play were hard-hit, and he made a couple of nice plays at third. Ortiz finishes the three-game series 5-for-9 with a homer. He’s hit .338 with four homers and 13 RBI in his last 21 games, raising his OPS from .530 to .662.

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.