The Milwaukee Brewers have the best record in baseball, but are trying to lock up the top seed in the National League.
They have been without Abner Uribe recently, after placing him on the injured list with a right forearm flexor strain. Uribe started a rehab assignment with High-A Wisconsin on Tuesday. He has pitched in one minor league game this season, striking out one batter in a scoreless inning.
Uribe's injury was believed to be non-serious, but Pat Murphy dropped a slightly concerning update on Friday. He will need to throw in another rehab game before he's ready to return.
"It didn’t feel great the next day, and we wanted to make sure he had a great catch play the next day,” Murphy said of Uribe regarding his Tuesday outing. “If you bring him back here and he gets (hurt again), then you’re in a bind. I think it’s wise to handle it this way.”
Uribe has established himself as one of the best leverage relievers in the game. He has served as Trevor Megill's setup man for most of the year and has even filled in as closer at times. He has a 2.05 ERA this season, appearing in 49 games for the National League-leading Brewers.
Since the start of June, he has a 0.67 ERA and is a major reason as to why the Brewers have one of the best bullpens in baseball. If the Brewers want to win the World Series, Uribe will need to be healthy. He is essentially a second closer for Murphy, and his importance was felt last postseason.
In Game 5 of the National League Division Series, Murphy started Megill to shut down a Chicago Cubs offense that had been very good in the first inning of that series. Having Uribe available to close the game was a big reason he was willing to do that.
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