Emotions high as Barnes called up by Crew

PHILADELPHIA — After getting word he’d earned a callup to the Major Leagues, Jacob Barnes’ first telephone call was to his mother. The 26-year-old Brewers reliever’s eyes welled with tears Thursday while talking about that call.

“She was dealing with a lot,” Barnes said.

Barnes’ stepfather, Ray, the man who raised Jacob since he was a year old, was diagnosed with Stage 4 cancer of the lungs and brain just as Barnes was beginning his first Major League Spring Training camp. Ray passed away in late April.

Barnes left the Triple-A Colorado Springs team for more than a week to help his mother, who has physical limitations. Two weeks later, he left again, this time for a happy event. Barnes attended the birth of his first child, a daughter named Maisy.

Along the way, he navigated his professional obligations well enough to earn a callup to the Brewers, who promoted Barnes on Wednesday while placing reliever Michael Blazek on the disabled list with a right elbow impingement. Barnes posted a 1.21 ERA and held opponents to a .184 average …

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