CINCINNATI -- The Brewers lost another close game and their best player, the latest setbacks to an already disheartening season.

Milwaukee put outfielder Ryan Braun on the 15-day disabled list after a 4-3, 10-inning loss to the Cincinnati Reds on Friday night.

The Brewers hoped Braun could get back into the lineup on Friday. He'd missed four games while resting a sore right thumb, but went out to take batting practice. The session didn't go well, leaving Milwaukee with no other choice.

Braun is batting .304 with nine homers and 36 RBIs. He won the NL's Most Valuable Player award in 2011 and finished second to San Francisco's Buster Posey last year.

"He went out and swung today, took batting practice and the soreness is still there," manager Ron Roenicke said. "This is a move we tried to avoid. After talking to him, I think this is the right way to go."

Earlier this month, ESPN's "Outside the Lines" reported that Braun is among a group of major league players facing a suspension for his connection to an anti-aging clinic at the heart of an ongoing performance-enhancing drug scandal.

Information from The Associated Press was used in this report.