Craig Counsell spoke with the media ahead of the Wednesday nights Brewers vs Orioles game. One topic covered was the news of Willy Adames returning and Brice Turang being optioned to Triple-A. During his interview he provided an honest assessment of the rookie as well as the ebbs and flows of being a major league player.
Milwaukee Brewers manager Craig Counsell has an honest assessment of optioning down Brice Turang.
It’s no secret that Brice Turang had been in a slump at the plate. He did have a multi hit game Tuesday night including a game tying hit in the eighth inning, but before that he was in the midst of an 0-21 hit less streak and 1 for his last 41 at-bats. Defensively he is an impact player, but at this time the Brewers feel it is better for him to play in an environment where the pressure to get results is less.
When manager Craig Counsell talked about the decision he provided a very truthful response.
“The league has taught Brice some lessons here about offense. At this point it’s a time to, like, let’s just step back for a while, put you in a different environment where the pressure to produce is not so ‘there’. We can relax a little bit, work on some things while still playing. That’s what has to happen. You do need to produce at a certain level to be a contributor to winning baseball. Brice and I, we talked openly about that. He’s a competitor and he gets that. This is an environment to all him to go get it back.
Look Brandon Woodruff got optioned. Corbin Burnres got optioned. Freddy Peralta got optioned. Very, very good players in the Major Leagues who have great careers get optioned. You don’t have to look at it like a positive, but it’s part of your journey as a player. This doesn’t make Brice Turang unique, it doesn’t write anything that can’t be done by Brice Turang, it doesn’t say he can’t be an All-Star or anything like that. It’s just where he’s at right now. It’s what needs to be done for him to be a better player”
As Craig Counsell mentioned very good players have been optioned to the Minor Leagues before. This move should allow him to get back on track and it’s likely that he will return to the Brewers at some point this season.
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