Roenicke believes things can turn around for the Brewers

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After a day off yesterday, the Milwaukee Brewers will open a weekend series in Arizona tonight. Manager Ron Roenicke says he still believes the Brewers are a pretty good team, despite a sputtering offense and inconsistent pitching that has dropped the Brew Crew to eight games below .500 at 18-and-26. After leading the Crew to 96 wins and a deep playoff run a year ago, Roenicke is facing his hardest test in his second season in Milwaukee. He says he’s had to do more thinking this year to get around the nearly constant injuries that he didn’t have to deal with in 2011. And the skipper and his coaches have had to be more vocal in the clubhouse as well, as quiet players replaced clubhouse leaders Prince Fielder, Mark Kotsay, Craig Counsell, and La Troy Hawkins – all of whom retired or moved on in free agency. Right-fielder Corey Hart says the dynamic has changed. But he says Roenicke remains an eternal optimist – and a quick pep talk from him can really change a struggling player’s attitude. Hart says it helps that the Brewers have a manager who knows that things can change at the drop of a hat. And if that turns, Hart says the Brewers can still win a lot of games. Right-hander Yovani Gallardo starts for the Brewers tonight against Arizona right-hander Ian Kennedy.

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Reliever Mike McClendon is expected to re-join the Brewers tonight in Phoenix. He’s being called up today from Triple-“A” Nashville to take Marco Estrada’s roster spot. Estrada was put on the 15-day disabled list yesterday with a strained right quadriceps muscle suffered in Milwaukee’s last game on Wednesday, an 8-to-5 home victory over San Francisco. Estrada lasted just one inning before he was injured while running the bases on a two-run double. His next scheduled start was to be on Tuesday night in Los Angeles. Left-hander Manny Parra is expected to get that start. The right-hander McClendon is 2-and-2 at Nashville with a four-point-one-nine E-R-A. In an earlier stint with the Brewers this year, he had an E-R-A of over 10 in five-and-a-third relief innings.

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