After Jackson Chourio Injury, Should Milwaukee Brewers Be in Market for Outfield Help?

It's not yet clear whether Jackson Chourio will even require a stint on the injured list. He pulled up slightly while running the bases Tuesday night and left the game, but rather than a strain, the Brewers termed his malady a "spasm" when announcing the reason for his departure. Pat Murphy could only say the team would "wait and see" about Chourio's status after the game, and Chourio described the twinge as a "tickle".

Hamstrings can be tricky, and this situation will demand monitoring in the days ahead. For now, though, it looks like the Brewers have avoided major injury to their young franchise player. That's great news. However, the mere specter of an injury to Chourio is enough to raise the question: should the Brewers shop in the outfield market at all, in the day and a half left before Thursday evening's trade deadline? 

As good as the team's outfield depth has appeared to be throughout this year, the idea of supplementing it is far from crazy. Firstly, they're already down one key cog, with Garrett Mitchell out for the year. Secondly, Blake Perkins is freshly returned from an injury that took longer than initially hoped to heal, and Sal Frelick just came back from a minimum-length stay on the IL with his own hamstring strain. Taken together, the Perkins, Frelick and Chourio concerns and the caution the team has exercised with regard to Christian Yelich leave the team with enough question marks to make adding depth to their outfield mix a worthy consideration.

All conversational roads seem to lead back to Willi Castro, lately. This one is no exception. How can the team fit in an extra outfield option on a roster crowded with talent, when the injuries they're trying to create a bulwark against don't have any of the players affected on the IL (at least for now)? Perhaps the answer is: add a guy who can also play the infield. Castro fits as a replacement for the final spot on the bench, and can flex between second and third base and all three outfield positions, as needed. A trade between the Crew and the Twins to bring Castro aboard might now be incrementally more plausible than it was a day ago.

Minnesota also has full-time outfielder Harrison Bader, although he doesn't come with the same positional versatility as Castro. Other players who could be available to provide reinforcement in the outfield include the Nationals' Alex Call and the White Sox's Michael A. Taylor. The team doesn't need a starting-caliber outfielder; they just need someone who offers insurance against a prolonged absence for one of their incumbents.

Of course, one can even argue that they don't need that. The Brewers are the best, most well-rounded team in baseball right now, and their depth is superb. If it's a bit diminished in the outfield, at the moment, so be it. Murphy's Marauders are in great shape, in the battle for both the NL Central and the top seed in the National League. Chourio would be a major loss, but the team can absorb even that. With just over 30 hours left to the trade deadline, they should keep shopping with an open mind—but they have no truly pressing needs.