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MILWAUKEE — The Chicago Cubs are rolling with a near-identical roster in the National League Division Series as the one they used in the wild-card round.

Ahead of Game 1 Saturday at American Family Field, the Cubs again went with 14 position players and 12 pitchers, opting to add right-hander Ben Brown and removing left-hander Taylor Rogers from their roster.

Manager Craig Counsell likes the different look Brown could give them, specifically his ability to deliver a strikeout. The Milwaukee Brewers personnel also shifted the Cubs’ priority to adding an arm such as Brown’s rather than carry three lefties in the bullpen. Three off days built into the series also creates more flexibility with the bullpen.

Pitchers (12): LHP Matthew Boyd, LHP Shota Imanaga, RHP Jameson Taillon, RHP Colin Rea, RHP Ben Brown, RHP Daniel Palencia, RHP Brad Keller, RHP Andrew Kittredge, LHP Drew Pomeranz, RHP Michael Soroka, LHP Caleb Thielbar and RHP Aaron Civale

Catchers (3): Carson Kelly, Reese McGuire and Moisés Ballesteros

Infielders (6): Michael Busch, Justin Turner, Nico Hoerner, Dansby Swanson, Matt Shaw and Willi Castro

Outfielders (5): Ian Happ, Pete Crow-Armstrong, Seiya Suzuki, Kyle Tucker and Kevin Alcántara

Right-hander Javier Assad is the notable exclusion. Assad had been unavailable for the wild-card roster after starting the final game of the regular season. Counsell said Assad was “under strong consideration” to be put on the roster, but ultimately felt Brown was the better fit.

“Absolutely it was a difficult decision,” Counsell said.

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