Ryan Braun dealing with neck issue again

RyanBraun
Pittsburgh -- Ryan Braun is out of the lineup tonight with a stiff neck as the Milwaukee Brewers open a four-game series against the Pittsburgh Pirates at PNC Park.

Manager Ron Roenicke had hinted over the weekend in Cincinnati that Braun would probably need a game off to recuperate a bit, and Monday wound up being the day.

The timing certainly isn't great, as the Brewers have lost four straight games and nine of 10 and Braun is a career .429 hitter against Pirates starter A.J. Burnett (6 for 14), but the neck has gotten to the point where it needs to be addressed.

"I don’t want him out of there," Roenicke said. "But physically he’s been fighting the neck issue. He wasn’t sure if he was going to be able to play the games in Cincinnati. Somewhere, whether it was yesterday or today, he needs a day.

"It’s different when you’re playing well and things are going good. But we need him, and he does hit Burnett well."

Roenicke said that as far as he knew, Braun didn't aggravate his neck while playing.

"Wasn’t a swing," he said. "I don’t know if it was sleeping. But he woke up with it stiffer again and fought pretty good for a couple days. Maybe getting a little bit better from it, but we want to get rid of it and make sure we get the guy back in the No. 3 slot that we need to have."

Braun missed an entite three-game series against Arizona at Miller Park earlier in the season with neck spasms, and the Brewers wound up being swept. Roenicke indicated this latest bout of pain isn't serious enough to keep Braun out multiple games, however.

"I don’t think it is," he said. "At that point he couldn’t turn his head."

Braun will be available to pinch hit tonight if need be.

"He thought he was going to be OK to pinch hit," said Roenicke. "I told him I’ll give him plenty of warning. But he said I could use him."


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(jsonline.com)
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