What we learned: July 18, 2014

Roster moves dominated the day yesterday.

With the Brewers preparing to return to action yesterday, a few roster moves came up in preparation of that. The first move is technically just a return for now, as Jean Segura is expected to meet the team in Washington today. It is not certain whether or not Segura will be activated today, and how much he will play right away. However, the Brewers did make space for him on the roster by sending Jeff Bianchi to the disabled list. Bianchi had been dealing with an elbow sprain before the All-Star Break, and it has not healed enough yet for him to return. This will also allow the Brewers to keep Elian Herrera up for now to see if he can build off of his five-hit game.

The final move was the return of Irving Falu, who the Brewers claimed back off of waivers from the Padres. Falu had made a few appearances with the team earlier this season, but was sent back to Nashville and then removed from the 40-man roster, which put him on waivers where the Padres claimed him. For now, Falu will report to Nashville, but he could make another appearance with the Brewers soon.

Cram Session

More from BCB

• Jonathan Lucroy's performance in Tuesday night's All-Star Game was one of the best in Brewers history. Noah looked at where the performance ranked among other notable performances in the game.

First Half Notes

• Todd Rosiak of the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel has five things that went right and five that went wrong in the first half of the season, as well as an overall recap of the first half of the season.
• Keeping things positive, Ryan Topp of Disciples of Uecker looked at what is right with the Brewers at the break.
• Continuing the theme of best/worsts of the first half, Miller Park Drunk has his list of the best and worst things of the first half of the season.
• Is the sky falling right now? Jay D of Reviewing the Brew takes a look at the first half of the season from the perspective of a fan.

Second Half Previews

• With the second half about to start, Adam McCalvy of Brewers.com looks ahead to the second half of the season.
• Tom Haudricourt of the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel also has five things to watch in the second half of the season.
• Here's another person that believes the Brewers will continue to plummet. John Perrotto of The Sports Xchange on Yahoo sees the Cardinals winning the division and the Brewers not getting a wild-card spot.

Other Notes

• Last night, MLB Network aired a special on Bob Uecker called "Mr. Baseball, Bob Uecker." Don't worry if you missed it, it will air again on MLB Network Saturday at 11 am.
• As the trade deadline approaches, Doug Melvin is listening, but not urgently looking at making a trade.
• Steven Jewell of Reviewing the Brew has a profile of Mark Reynolds.
• On this trip to Washington, the Brewers are bringing a couple of Wounded Warriors with them as guests of the team. They will be in uniform for all three games, in case you see them in the dugout.
• Nine years ago, Chorizo made its debut in the Sausage Race. Cait of John & Cait looks back at the introduction of the sausage.
• Remember Ralph Sasson, the guy who filed a defamation suit against Ryan Braun? He's not done quite yet, as he posted his recorded deposition on YouTube. Badgernoonan of Ron Roenicke Stole My Baseball watched it and has some highlights from it.
• Mississippi Matt Smith of NotGraphs has proof that Adam Wainwright grooved one for Derek Jeter.
• I just found out that Tim Dillard has a blog a few days ago. His most recent post is on the many different superstitions players have, some normal and some strange.

Minor League Update

News & Notes

• The DSL All-Star Game will take place this weekend, and Joantgel Segovia and Yeraldy Martinez of the DSL Brewers will participate in the game.
• The Brewers affiliates may have some strange nicknames, but Greg Pearson of the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel notes why they make sense. He also looks at the wacky nicknames of other teams around the minor leagues.

Check out morineko's daily minor league update for a more in-depth look at yesterday's minor league results.

Division Update

This Weekend's Division Games

• Dodgers @ Cardinals
  Friday: Dan Haren vs. Lance Lynn - 7:15 pm
  Saturday: Zack Greinke vs. Joe Kelly - 3:05 pm
  Sunday: Clayton Kershaw vs. Carlos Martinez - 7:05 pm
• Reds @ Yankees
  Friday: Mike Leake vs. David Phelps - 6:05 pm
  Saturday: Alfredo Simon vs. Brandon McCarthy - 12:05 pm
  Sunday: Johnny Cueto vs. Hiroki Kuroda -  12:05 pm
• Rockies @ Pirates
  Friday: Jorge de la Rosa vs. Francisco Liriano - 6:05 pm
  Saturday: Brett Anderson vs. Charlie Morton - 6:05 pm
  Sunday: Tyler Matzek vs. Jeff Locke - 12:35 pm
• Diamondbacks @ Cubs
  Friday: Edwin Jackson vs. Trevor Cahill - 8:40 pm
  Saturday: Travis Wood vs. Wade Miley - 7:10 pm
  Sunday: Jake Arrieta vs. Josh Collmenter - 3:10 pm

This Weekend's Action

The Brewers return to action this weekend in Washington D.C. for a three-game series against the Nationals. Here are the weekend's pitching matchups:

Friday: Kyle Lohse vs. Stephen Strasburg - 6:05 pm
Saturday: Matt Garza vs. Gio Gonzalez - 6:05 pm
Sunday: Yovani Gallardo vs. Doug Fister - 12:35 pm