NEW YORK – There were several developments on the pitching front Friday that will impact the Milwaukee Brewers in the days to come.

Manager Craig Counsell said veteran right-hander Junior Guerra would return from bereavement leave and rejoin the club Saturday after visiting his ailing father in Venezuela. When Guerra arrives, a player will have to come off the 25-man roster to accommodate him.

Counsell also said right-hander Freddy Peralta, on the injured list with a shoulder issue, would make a minor-league rehab start Saturday for Class AA Biloxi in Chattanooga. If that appearance goes well, Peralta will rejoin the Brewers and be added to the big-league roster.

“We’re open to what happens but most likely it will just be one (rehab outing),” Counsell said. “We were debating whether he would go out for a start but decided to put him on the mound down there before getting him back in a major-league game.”

In another noteworthy development, right-hander Jimmy Nelson has been moved from extended spring training and placed on minor-league rehabilitation assignment with Class AAA San Antonio. Nelson is scheduled to make his first start for the Missions on Sunday, which would be his first regular-season appearance at any level since suffering a major shoulder injury with the Brewers in September 2017.

The unspoken pending pitching move is the addition of left-hander Gio Gonzalez, who agreed to a $2 million free-agent deal on Wednesday. The Brewers have yet to announce that signing, but the 33-year-old veteran is expected to join the club this weekend, necessitating opening spots on both the 40-man and 25-man rosters.

With Gonzalez on the near horizon and Peralta probably not too far behind, the Brewers will have some decisions to make with a starting rotation that suddenly went into flux with Peralta’s injury and Corbin Burnes’ demotion to the minors.

Chase Anderson was scheduled to make a second spot start in place of Peralta on Friday night against the New York Mets and Adrian Houser came up to make a start in St. Louis earlier in the week.

To put it mildly, there is room for improvement with the rotation. Entering play Friday, the Brewers’ starters had a 5.84 earned run average, easily the worst in the National League. Surprisingly, the Mets were next-to-last with a 4.97 ERA from their starters.

“We’ve been struggling a little bit,” said right-hander Zach Davies, who has been the Brewers’ best starter (2-0, 1.65). “We don’t know yet how they’re going to use (Gonzalez) but we know what kind of person he is, what kind of ballplayer he is. He has put up numbers his whole career, and came in last year and fit in perfectly with our group (after being acquired from Washington on Aug. 31).

“It got to the point where they decided to make a move. I don’t think anybody is sour over it. It is tough for some guys. Once he gets here, we’ll know what the plan is.”

As for making an outside move before April is done, Davies said, “I don’t think it’s panicking. It’s just an addition; just some help. He fits well here. Everybody knows him and likes him.

“I don’t think there’s any real worry right now. Guys are still getting a feel for what they have. Situations change. It’s different once the season starts; there’s a plan of attack. And we’ve probably had the toughest schedule in baseball. At the same time, we want to do better. Hopefully, we get back on track sooner rather than later. It’s a long baseball season.”

Shaw finds stroke on the links

How did Travis Shaw rediscover his power stroke? Playing golf, of course.

Shaw, who snapped out of a long power slump with three home runs in St. Louis earlier in the week, said he began to feel better at the plate after playing several holes of gold Tuesday morning, something he normally wouldn’t do on a game day. But swinging a golf club helped him with his baseball stroke in the past, so he figured why not?

“It usually does a lot for my swing, like tempo, rhythm,” said Shaw, who had just one home run for the season before breaking loose in St. Louis. “There are a lot of similarities. It just gives me a better feel at the plate.

“I don’t know if it’s more mental or what. But the last three or four years, if I go golfing, I feel better (at the plate) in the next day or two. It was to the point where I said, ‘Let’s just try it and see what happens.’ I usually only play on off days. That night, I hit two (home runs).

“I brought my clubs to St. Louis because there’s a course pretty close to the hotel. Nobody else wanted to go, so I went by myself. I played, like, 14 holes. I was only going to play nine but it went fast so I did a few more.”

Asked if he’d keep his golf clubs at the ready if he needs a “refresher course” in the future, Shaw said, “People think golf messes up your baseball swing but it’s the opposite. There are a lot of similarities, like the path (of the swing). It usually helps my swing, but it’s more rhythm and tempo.”