As expected, the Brewers made only two call-ups on Tuesday, when active rosters expanded from 25 to 40. Shortstop J.J. Hardy and reliever Chris Smith will be back in uniform for the Brewers for the opener of a three-game series at Busch Stadium.
Hardy got a surprise demotion to Triple-A Nashville on Aug. 12 and batted .254 in 18 games with the Sounds, with four home runs and 12 RBIs. He was hitting .229 for the Brewers before the move down.
Smith has a 1.27 ERA in 28 games for Nashville. He pitched for the Brewers for much of this season, posting a 3.62 ERA in 23 games.
The Brewers will promote a few more players over the coming days, but did not want to raid Nashville during the team’s postseason push. Corey Patterson’s 12th-inning on Monday gave the Sounds a 1/2-game division lead with a week to play.
