If Sal Frelick Starts Second Half on Injured List, How Will Milwaukee Brewers Adapt Lineup?

It seems overwhelmingly likely that the Brewers will take the field Friday to begin the second half without Sal Frelick. The team's everyday right fielder and leadoff man will probably require an injured-list placement, and if he turns out to have a hamstring strain of any severity, he'll be out until at least mid-August. That leaves a gaping hole in the team's plans, not because they lack depth—they don't—but because of how well Frelick has played all season. He's batting .294/.354/.404 this year, with a terrific strikeout rate of 12.7% and 17 stolen bases in 21 tries. He's continued to play excellent defense in right field, and his bat speed and quality of contact this year are greatly improved. 

Replacing Frelick on the roster would be relatively easy. Blake Perkins is ready and waiting at Triple-A Nashville. His entire first half was wiped out by the foul ball he hit off his own leg early in camp, and by unexpected setbacks on his rehab journey. Now, however, he's set to return, and his combination of solid switch-hitting skills and elite outfield defense should make him the natural choice. He can play center field much of the time, pushing Jackson Chourio to right.

Isaac Collins's emergence as a solidly above-average player has made this blow much easier to absorb than it might have been otherwise. With him, Chourio, Perkins and Christian Yelich all in the mix, the team has good outfield depth. They have versatile players all over the roster, too, including Caleb Durbin (who played the outfield at times in the minors), Anthony Seigler and Jake Bauers.

Offensively, though, Frelick's value will be harder to replicate. Garrett Mitchell is the kind of dynamic hitter who could step into the void, but he's gone for the year with his own injury. Frelick has a 108 projected wRC+ for the balance of the year, according to the ZiPS projection system. Collins (103) is close to that level, but he was already a part of the everyday lineup. This absence, if it lasts for any length of time, will mean more time for Bauers (98), Perkins (83), and/or Seigler (77). That leaves Pat Murphy with some challenges in constructing his batting order, especially with Rhys Hoskins still on the shelf.

Against right-handed starters, we could see a starting nine of:

1. Brice Turang - 2b
2. Jackson Chourio - rf
3. Christian Yelich - dh
4. William Contreras - c
5. Isaac Collins - lf
6. Andrew Vaughn - 1b
7. Caleb Durbin - 3b
8. Blake Perkins - cf
9. Joey Ortiz - ss

That's missing some of the punch that the team used to get in the middle third, though. Hoskins could punish pitchers for letting traffic accumulate on the bases, and Turang was an effective all-fields threat. Having Vaughn stand in for Hoskins and Turang forced to slide way up to replace Frelick thins things out at the bottom.

Hopefully, a few days of rest will get Frelick right more than expected. There's still a chance he plays even this weekend, and certainly one that he plays before the end of the month. If the team has to get by without him for a prolonged period, though, it's going to be hard for the lineup to continue churning out runs the way they have over the last two months.