As we come up on the Super 2 threshold, we should start seeing some AAA promotions.  It is time to free Luis Lara.

Centerfield has been manned by Garrett Mitchell, Blake Perkins, and now Jackson Chourio.  Chourio's presence in CF has been a necessity to increase the offensive production due to poor production at SS, 3B, RF and CF. 

Garrett Mitchell has been pretty average with his bat - though mostly due to his high walk rate.  And brings a positive WAR - though mostly due to his defense.  There are some warning flags to be wary of (high BABIP and K rates) and the Brewers are also being cautious in how much he plays to keep him healthy.

Blake Perkins made me realize the OPS+ can actually go negative (-9). and really has been unplayable aside for a defensive replacement.  Blake is also in his final year of pre-arbitration.  As a career 624 OPS / 74 OPS+ batter, I don't see the Brewers holding on to him after this year. 

Sal Frelick has also been having a cold, cold start on offense.  While he solely plays RF, this lack of production is one reason the Brewers are pushing Bauers out to LF and Chourio in CF. I think all of us expect Sal to bounce back, the reality is that he only has one year above average (111 OPS+ last year), so his offensive reality might be lower also. 

So here we loop back to Lara.  Luis has been tearing up AAA this year but is not an offensive juggernaut.  His minor league career OPS has been 733 even while he is scorching the highest minor league level to a tune of 962 at the tender age of 21.  Sal Frelick by comparison has an 844 OPS average in the minors while competing at a similarly young age (+1 year older at each level). 

So why am I calling for Lara to come up? 

At worst, he is upgrading the 2026 Blake Perkins back to the 2024 Black Perkins: excellent defense with a 650 OPS.  Let Blake go back to AAA and see if he can figure out what is wrong with his bat. 

At best, Lara offensive outburst comes from a real improvement found this offseason.  Perhaps he brings a 700-800 OPS with excellent defense to our CF and give the Brewers a chance to go Bauers-Lara-Chourio across the OF while giving Frelick a few days off to figure things out.