In need of infield depth, Brewers get Felipe Lopez from Rays - MLB

In a move that presumably won’t keep them from pursuing further infield help between now and Sunday’s trade deadline, the Brewers have acquired Felipe Lopez from the Rays for cash considerations.

Lopez is a veteran of 11 seasons in the majors, but has spent most of this season playing at Triple-A Durham, where he batted .305 with seven homers and an .831 OPS in 44 games.

Milwaukee was said to be in the market for infield help even before Rickie Weeks’ ankle injury knocked him out for 3-6 weeks, so bringing in the 31-year-old, switch-hitting Lopez is probably just a low-cost stopgap solution while they continue to go after, say, Jamey Carroll of the Dodgers.

Lopez previously played for the Brewers in 2009, when he hit .320 in 66 games after coming over from the Diamondbacks in a trade for a pair of mid-level prospects. He’s hit just .230 in 145 games since.

CINCINNATI — The Los Angeles Dodgers placed pitcher Noah Syndergaard on the 15-day injured list Thursday with a blister on the index finger of his right throwing hand.

Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said the timetable for Syndergaard’s return is unknown despite the 15-day designation.

“The physical, the mental, the emotional part, as he’s talked about, has taken a toll on him,” Roberts said. “So, the ability to get him away from this. He left today to go back to Los Angeles to kind of get back to normalcy.”

Syndergaard allowed six runs and seven hits in three innings against the Cincinnati Reds on Tuesday night, raising his ERA to 7.16.

Syndergaard (1-4) has surrendered at least five runs in three straight starts.

Syndergaard has been trying to return to the player he was before Tommy John surgery sidelined him for the better part of the 2020 and 2021 seasons.

Roberts said Syndergaard will need at least “a few weeks” to both heal and get away from baseball and “reset.”

“I think searching and not being comfortable with where he was at in the moment is certainly evident in performance,” Roberts said. “So hopefully this time away will provide more clarity on who he is right now as a pitcher.

“Trying to perform when you’re searching at this level is extremely difficult. I applaud him from not running from it, but it’s still very difficult. Hopefully it can be a tale of two stories, two halves when he does come back.”