Tuesday night in San Diego, Brewers first baseman Mat Gamel slammed into a wall while chasing a foul ball (video).

Gamel stayed in the game, but exited the game the next inning while swinging in the on-deck circle.

Wednesday, the Brewers received the most dreadful news: As Tom Haudricourt reports, Gamel suffered a torn anterior cruciate ligament around his right knee, and will need season-ending surgery.

Gamel, who's been posting big numbers in Class AAA for years, was supposed to finally get a big chance to play this season, with Prince Fielder leaving via free agency. But Gamel's struggled at the plate, with just one home run and six RBI in 21 games.

In Gamel's absence, lefty-hitting Travis Ishikawa is expected to take over at first base. Unfortunately, Ishikawa's been struggling too, and carries a .262/.323/.402 career major-league line into his next game. Ishikawa might have a platoon partner in veteran Brooks Conrad, expected to be summoned from triple-A Nashville.

If Gamel had panned out, there seemed to be a decent chance the Brewers wouldn't miss Fielder so much. Now it looks like they'll miss him quite a lot.