One of the toughest things Brewers manager Craig Counsell will have to do next weekend will be to set his postseason roster. Some very well-known and liked players will be left off, mostly due to lack of performance and the fact that this Brewers team is built for depth, not top-end talent.

Mostly, the players left off would be designated bench players and bullpen depth guys, so as much of a “loss” as it is, it’s more personal to the players than to the actual flow of the team.

Each round of the postseason allows for different players to be used. In fact, there is the playoff roster, and then there is the secondary roster of guys who can be called up due to injury during a series. 

For instance, if centerfielder Lorenzo Cain blew out his knee in Game 2 of the Divisional Series, Keon Broxton could join the roster the next day at no cost (other than Cain’s superior talent). But if Chase Anderson gives up 6 runs in an inning, he cannot be demoted due to poor performance.

Currently the Brewers hold a 3-game lead on the Cardinals for the home game in the Wild Card, and a 4.5-game lead with 9 games to play on Colorado for the final playoff spot. Sure, the Cubs are only 2.5 games ahead in the NL Central, but with less than 10 to play, it is very improbable a division title is at play. It is even more improbable that Milwaukee would fall out of the playoffs at this point. 

So, the Wild Card game it is for Milwaukee.

And the cool thing about the Wild Card game? It’s considered a series, so it gets its own designated 1-game roster. 

Normally a regular season roster has either 12 or 13 pitchers and the opposite number for hitters. Of pitchers, five are typically starters and the other 7 or 8 are relievers. But in a single game playoff, why would you carry five starting pitchers? You wouldn’t. That means the Brewers can pitch, say, Jhoulys Chacin as the starter and go with a bevy of relievers after him. It’s for one game, and there is an off-day afterwards for rest.

Milwaukee’s best trait about the bullpen is not just how effective they have been all year, but how many innings each reliever can throw. Most relievers in the Brewers’ bullpen can throw more than one inning, so at most Counsell would keep one other starter on hand — maybe Wade Miley — in case of a long-relief situation, which again, would be only 2-3 innings. 

That also means that nearly all those extra hitters can be on the roster for pinch hitting or defensive purposes. That means guys like Eric Thames, Domingo Santana and Broxton can all get a taste of the postseason, as well as infielder Tyler Saladino. We could see a contest in which Milwaukee takes 16 hitters and just nine pitchers into the one-game elimination.

Should the Brewers prevail, however, it would get really interesting. Counsell will only keep four starters, and possibly hold a fifth for long relief. If I were managing, I would simply go with 11 total pitchers and 14 hitters. It sounds crazy, but when you consider the depth of the relievers, their individual ability to throw more than an inning each and the low cumulative ERA, a starter would typically only need to get to the fifth inning before Cedeno, Burnes, Knebel, Hader or Jeffress is unleashed. Would Joakim Soria be left off the roster? How about Jordan Lyles, Taylor Williams, Brandon Woodruff, Dan Jennings or Jacob Barnes? I would pick just one of those — either Soria or Lyles — and leave the others in the hotel nearby in case of an injury.

As far as hitters are concerned, there are 12 locks — Cain (OF), Ryan Braun (OF), MVP candidate Christian Yelich (OF), all-star Jesus Aguilar (1B), Travis Shaw (2B), Mike Moustakas (3B), Jonathan Schoop (2B), Orlando Arcia (SS), Eric Kratz (C), Manny Pina (C), Curtis Granderson (OF) and Hernan Perez (utility). That means Thames, Saladino, Santana and Broxton are fighting for two spots. Saladino brings infield versatility and a weak right-handed bat. Santana has been hot in September, but struggled both in Triple-A and the majors this year after hitting 30 bombs last year for Milwaukee. Broxton has speed for the base paths and great defense, but is a subpar hitter and Thames is a power lefty bat whose defense at first base and the outfield is suspect — and he doesn’t hit for a high average.

I would roll the dice and take Saladino and Broxton, but all four have merit. And again, this is if Counsell sticks with 14 hitters and not 13. If that’s the case, only one of the four will see at bats in the second round.

But they have to get there first.

The NL Wild Card game is set for Oct. 2.

— Adam Krebs is a reporter for the Times and a fantasy baseball champion, so he knows what he’s talking about. He can be reached at akrebs@themonroetimes.net.