With just eight games remaining in a playoff chase, the Brewers give Christian Yelich 'mental reset' day

As the Milwaukee Brewers submitted their lineup card prior to Wednesday night’s game against the St. Louis Cardinals, one big name in particular was absent.

With only eight games left and the team chasing a wild card spot, outfielder Christian Yelich was healthy but not listed.

“No, there’s not a health issue,” Brewers manager Craig Counsell said. “We’re just giving him a day off to try to reset a little bit for the last seven. He’s available to play.”

Yelich will be available off the bench, Counsell said, but a reset with so few games remaining and so much pressure riding on each one?

“I think trying to get the best out of him, just taking a day,” Counsell said. “Just kind of a mental reset and then try to get the best out of him for the next seven and a half.”

Yelich and the Brewers were scheduled to face a lefthander on the mound Wednesday night in Jose Quintana. Throughout the season, those kinds of matchups were targeted as off-days in advance by the Brewers for Yelich, who is tied for the team lead in games played at 146.

That isn’t the case this time, however.

“It wasn’t targeted, no,” Counsell said.

Counsell also indicated the decision was what the team “had to do” to maximize their lineup tonight and over the final push to the season. The primary reason for that: Yelich has been mired in a slump, entering the day 1 for 26 at the plate over his last seven games.

Yelich hasn't homered since hitting a 499-foot blast in Colorado on September 6 and has just eight extra-base hits in his last 25 games, good for a .298 slugging percentage.

As logical as the decision may or may not be at this juncture – and that certainly can and will the merit of debate – the Brewers feeling they need to give a reset day to a player set to make $22 million per year over the next six seasons isn’t optimal for anyone involved.

This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: Brewers give Christian Yelich 'mental reset' day as season winds down