Notes: After sending Broxton down, Brewers chose not to recall Brinson to play in center

WASHINGTON – When the Milwaukee Brewers sent slump-ridden centerfielder Keon Broxton to Class AAA Colorado Springs on Saturday, some wondered why they didn’t summon Lewis Brinson from that club to replace him.

Instead, the Brewers activated utility player Eric Sogard off the disabled list and opted to give the majority of the playing time in center to rookie Brett Phillips, already on their roster.

Phillips is highly regarded but Brinson, 23, is the Brewers consensus No. 1 prospect and has been on fire with the Sky Sox. In 67 games, he was batting .345 with a .986 OPS, 22 doubles, 10 home runs and 43 RBI.

In 21 games with Colorado Springs since being sent down after his first stint with the Brewers, Brinson was batting .411 with nine doubles, three triples, four home runs and 18 RBI. Entering play Tuesday, he had hit safely in 17 consecutive games.

So, with the Brewers’ offense going flat of late, why wasn’t Brinson summoned to perhaps provide a boost?

“There’s a constant discussion going on about our roster and how different pieces fit on our roster,” general manager David Stearns said. “The decision on Keon was really based on what he was doing, and giving him a little space and chance to reset. We thought that was important for him.

“We’ve seen other players go through this, most notably (the Cubs’) Kyle Schwarber. We saw that decision more as one that relates to Keon personally more than anyone else. We’ll continue to evaluate our roster and see what the matchups look like, and who is potentially the best fit.

“In this case, we felt Brett (as a left-handed hitter) matched up well with the righties we faced in Philadelphia. We’ll continue to evaluate things and when we see opportunities for other players to help, we’ll take advantage of that.”

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Stearns didn’t indicate that Brinson’s struggles during his first stint with the Brewers were a factor in the decision. In 14 games, he batted .097 (3 for 31) with no homers or runs batted in.

“He is doing a great job at Colorado Springs but at this point, we’re evaluating it every day and will continue to do so,” Stearns said.

Broxton took a big step in the right direction in his first game with the Sky Sox on Monday, going 3 for 3 with two walks.

“That was great to see; it’s exciting,” said manager Craig Counsell. “This, to me, was a confidence thing. Let’s get him some confidence. If it happens there, in a different environment, that’s perfect. We’re hopeful he does well and we can get him back here.”

Lineup shuffle: Counsell made some notable changes in his lineup in the opener against Washington, dropping Eric Thames from second to fifth, moving Ryan Braun and Travis Shaw up to second and third, respectively, and putting Domingo Santana in the cleanup spot.

With Sogard leading off, the previous alignment had three left-handed hitters (Sogard, Thames and Shaw) among the first four, allowing teams to bring lefties out of the bullpen for favorable matchups. The Nationals have four lefties in their bullpen, and Counsell wanted to make it tougher for them to cover several left-handed hitters in an inning.

“It may be a one-day thing,” Counsell said. “It gives us the best opportunity for matchups later. We’ll see how it goes.”

Thames, who struggled in May (.791 OPS) and June (.669) after a banner April (11 HRs, 1.276 OPS), has bounced back a bit in July (.886 OPS) though his strikeout rate has been higher than in the early going.

“He had a great first month,” Counsell said. “He’s having a pretty good July. The strikeouts have been up a little bit, but he’s still doing a good job getting on base (.369 OBP).

“Against a lot of these right-handed pitchers, he’s still a good match-up with a chance to do damage. I think he’s perfectly capable of having a really good streak again.”