NewsBrewers add Heether to 40-man roster
Infielder may play utility role; Weeks, DiFelice, Riske reinstated
By Adam McCalvy / MLB.com
11/09/09 1:08 PM EST
MILWAUKEE -- The Brewers added infielder Adam Heether to the 40-man roster on Monday while reinstating second baseman Rickie Weeks and right-handers Mark DiFelice and David Riske from the 60-day disabled list. Heether turns 28 in January and could be a right-handed utility option for the Brewers next season because he can play any infield position and also saw action in left field in 2009. He spent most of the year at Triple-A Nashville, batting .293 with 16 home runs, 59 RBIs and an outstanding .400 on-base percentage. He's currently playing for Caracas in the Venezuelan Winter League. The Brewers selected Heether in the 11th round of the 2003 First-Year Player Draft and he would have been a Minor League free agent had he not been added to the roster. Weeks, DiFelice and Riske will all be returning from injury in 2010. Weeks, expected back next year as Milwaukee's leadoff hitter, underwent surgery in early May to repair a tendon sheath in his left wrist and has now had both wrists surgically repaired. Riske lost the whole season to Tommy John elbow ligament replacement surgery on his right elbow and will be entering the final season of a three-year contract. DiFelice ended the season on the DL with a shoulder injury but avoided surgery. With Monday's morning moves, the Brewers' 40-man roster was left at 37. Six spots were cleared last week when outfielders Mike Cameron, Frank Catalanotto and Corey Patterson, catcher Jason Kendall and infielder Felipe Lopez elected to file for free agency, and three more could open when Craig Counsell, Claudio Vargas and David Weathers formally file. Weathers joined the pool of players eligible for free agency when the Brewers declined his club option last week.Adam McCalvy is a reporter for MLB.com. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Baseball or its clubs.
