Notes: Ryan Braun returns to the disabled list

There was minimal shuffling required on the Milwaukee Brewers' 25-man roster Friday.

Junior Guerra was reinstated from the disabled list and started against the Arizona Diamondbacks – his first appearance for the Brewers since opening day, when he suffered a strained right calf – while Ryan Braun went back on the DL after aggravating his left calf strain.

It was a short stint for Braun, who came off the DL on Sunday in Chicago. He appeared in just three games and went 0 for 9 with a walk before aggravating his injury while playing left field on Thursday.

Braun's initial stay on the DL was the minimum 10 days. Did he rush back too soon?

"I think hindsight always helps inform us when something doesn’t go as planned," general manager David Stearns said.

"In this case, Ryan was feeling better. Our medical staff was comfortable that it was time for him to go back out there. He went back out there and he aggravated it. Unfortunately, sometimes that’s going to happen.

"Muscle strains like this can be challenging to predict, so we do our best to evaluate subjectively. Obviously, there’s a subjective component in terms of how the player is feeling.

"I think Ryan wanted to get out there as fast as he could. The team is playing well and he had the ability to be a big part of that, but, unfortunately, it didn’t work out."

Braun was scheduled to be examined by team physician William Raasch later Friday afternoon, but the initial diagnosis is that the setback he suffered wasn't a serious one.

"He’s still undergoing some exams," Stearns said. "We’re fairly confident it’s a low-grade calf strain, and we believe it’s still significantly less severe than something like Junior’s.

"Originally we thought it was a 10-day type of injury the first time around, so we’ll see how it progresses over the next 10 days and go from there."

Just as they did the first time Braun went on the DL, the Brewers chose to draw from their depth to fill the void rather than dip into the minor leagues and bring up someone like top prospect Lewis Brinson.

Hernán Pérez hit third and started in left on Friday, while Eric Thames, Nick Franklin and Eric Sogard also will see time.

"I like our options. I think we all like our options," manager Craig Counsell said.

Susac recovering: It's been a tough season to date for Andrew Susac.

Originally expected to compete with Jett Bandy and Manny Piña for one of the Brewers' two catching spots, he's instead been battling himself.

First, Susac missed the last three weeks of spring training with a trapezius injury that forced him to the disabled list to open the season. He came off the DL on April 15 and played just 17 games at Class AAA Colorado Springs before going back on recently.

"Andrew has been having a series of cluster headaches," Stearns said. "It’s the first time in his life he’s experienced this. They’re not concussion-related at all. He’s been seen and he’s getting better.

"He’s on medication to help it get better, and this is the type of thing that once you work your way through it, it shouldn’t bother you at all in the future. So he’s headed in the right direction."

Susac is hitting just .161 with three homers and 12 RBI for the Sky Sox. René Garcia and Tyler Heinemann are handling the duties behind the plate at Colorado Springs in Susac's absence.

Welcome back: Counsell and Zack Greinke, who will face his old club Saturday, became good friends when Greinke pitched in Milwaukee. Before the start of this series, Counsell said the two had a "text conversation."

Greinke is known for having unique outlooks on baseball and other matters as well as, at times, brutal honesty in assessing people and situations. 

"He usually gives you something that you haven't heard before, and a different way of looking at things," Counsell said. "That makes you think about things a little differently. I always appreciate that.

"He's got very interesting observations about how he sees the game and the world."

Asked if Greinke gave him any blunt observations about the Brewers, Counsell smiled and replied, "No. I offered some suggestions to him on how he might not perform as well here on Saturday."