Ryan Braun will be shut down for the last week of the season due to an ailing back.
The Milwaukee Brewers outfielder attempted to play through the pain on Saturday after sitting out for a week beside one pinch-hit on Friday. Braun thought he was healthy enough to play nine innings but apparently the back issue flared up again.
Ryan Braun's lower back injury did not respond well to playing last night and #Brewers announce they are shutting him down. No surprise.
— Tom (@Haudricourt) September 27, 2015
Instead of risking further injury, the 65-win Brewers will rest their best player with only seven days remaining. Braun finishes his sixth All-Star season with a .285/.356/.498 batting line with 25 HR, 84 RBI and 24 SB over 140 games. It was a great bounce-back season for the former NL MVP now that he’s more than two years removed from being suspended for using performance enhancers. Surgery will likely be required to repair a herniated disc in Braun's back during the off-season.
Domingo Santana should see most of the action over the next week despite a .050 BA over his last 20 at-bats.