Notes: Brewers centerfielder Lorenzo Cain gets a rare breather in series finale

The Milwaukee Brewers' lineup was missing a fixture on Sunday.

Lorenzo Cain, who came into the series finale with the St. Louis Cardinals tied with Travis Shaw for the team lead in games played with 72, was given his first day off since May 23.

The centerfielder has had a rough go of it physically over the past few days.

He left Thursday's game with a hamstring cramp, was hit in the elbow by a pitch Friday and then exited Saturday's game prematurely after tweaking his groin and being hit in the shoulder blade by a pitch.

Cain had actually been informed by manager Craig Counsell before Saturday's game that he'd be off Sunday, a decision the 32-year-old endorsed.

"An off day every now and again definitely helps the body recover a little," Cain said. "It’s a long grind.

"Overall I feel good. Having some little hiccups as of late with the hammy and then the groin (on Saturday) so it’s kind of hard to judge. I’ve always struggled judging how my groin feels.

"The two days off will definitely help, so we’ll see what happens."

Cain set a goal in spring training of at least meeting and preferably beating the career high of 155 games played he set last season with the Kansas City Royals. He's played in 72 of a possible 77 to this point, and in 89.5% of the innings.

"He's been a guy who won't let you take him out of the lineup," Counsell said. "That's kind of the attitude he's taken. I think he's worked hard to get to that point. That's something he's made very important.

"It's due to a lot of hard work that he's put in -- being proactive and preventive with injuries and trying to do his best to understand how important he is to what we're doing out there."

Cain missed big chunks of time in several seasons due to injury earlier in his career but has learned to listen better to his body as he's grown older.

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He said he felt his groin tighten up while running down a Marcell Ozuna fly ball in the first inning Saturday and, after alerting the medical staff later in the game that it was tightening up, he was pulled.

"In the past I would have tried to play through stuff like that, and I’d probably have been out longer than what I should have if I’d have said something," Cain said. "But I’m trying to get smarter about it. I’m not trying to push through it.

"It’s still early in the season."

Cain said he was planning on receiving treatment both Sunday and on the off day Monday with an eye on returning to action Tuesday against his former team, the Kansas City Royals.

"I definitely love to play those guys. It’s always extra, added motivation," he said. "I definitely want to be out there. We’ll see where the groin’s at and go from there."

Mix and match: Sunday's alignment featured a lineup the Brewers fielded many times previously, with Orlando Arcia at shortstop and Jonathan Villar at second base.

But now Brad Miller is in the mix, Hernán Pérez and Eric Sogard can play both spots and Tyler Saladino is getting closer to returning from a sprained left ankle.

"It's not like a strict platoon in any way, but I think you'll see some different sets of players in the middle infield kind of moving forward here," Counsell said. "I would say we'll use all the players we've got, and I think they'll all contribute."

Miller has 345 major-league starts to his credit at shortstop but hasn't played a game there since 2016. The Brewers need to find some sort of production there, as they rank last in the major leagues in batting average, on-base percentage and slugging percentage at the position.

Six of the seven starts Miller made at Class AAA Colorado Springs prior to being recalled Saturday came at shortstop.

"That was a big thing in Colorado Springs, kind of shaking the rust off," said Miller, who hit 30 home runs and drove in 81 runs two seasons ago for the Tampa Bay Rays.

"I haven't played there in two years. After the first couple of games, I felt great. I was working with Andrés Blanco on some footwork stuff, and I kind of picked up where I left off. 

"For me, being a taller guy, I just have to get my footwork in check. You can't simulate the game. Getting to go to Colorado Springs and work out some kinks was definitely a positive."