Article: Brewers Minor League Link Report (5/25): In a Night of Intriguing Brewers Pitching Match-Ups it was Misiorowski Who Stole the Show

[Joseph Zarr]

 

Arm slot inconsistencies be damned, I say. When RHP Jacob Misiorowski's off-speed arsenal is as consistent as it was tonight, I just don't care what the so called experts proclaim. Let me just enjoy the sweet nectar for one evening of Low-A bliss. There is too much exuberant youth with too much talent to ignore here. Do we really even care if he ends up an MLB reliever or a starter? I sure don't.  In his longest and most effective outing to date as a professional pitcher, Misiorowski absolutely dazzled with O H, 0 BB, a questionable HBP, and 9 K - all from off-speed pitches. That's right. Not a single strikeout came from the 101 mph heat we were seeing on this fine late May evening. Let's get into the report!

Image courtesy of Brewer Fanatic

Game Balls: RHP Jacob Misiorowski was abolutely incredible in his longest outing as a professional pitcher through 5 IP, 0 H, 0 BB, 9 K. His slider was the best I've seen it - just a riveting display of pitching. 

 

INF Eric Brown Jr. continues his torrid run of late with a 4-for-5, 2 R, 3 RBI, 1 2B outing. C/DH Darrien Miller continued a scorching hot May (more below) with a key 2-RBI double in the first frame to help the T-Rats move toward their third straight. RHP Nick Merkel executed what may have been his best relief outing of his season with 2 IP and 3 K of late-inning relief work. His off-speed arsenal was truly wonderful as he held suit and extended the no-hit bid into the 9th frame. And, alas, 1B/DH Luke Voit has a two-game hitting streak! He hit his first long ball for those Nashville Sounds:

Transactions:

• RHP Jake Cousins was optioned to the Nashville Sounds from the Milwaukee Brewers

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Final: Iowa (Cubs) 12, Nashville 5 
Box Score / Game Log

Game Notes 

Via the Sounds' site, game details, please visit and review:

Sounds Crush Three Homers in Loss to Iowa

LHP Robert Gasser reverted to that inconsistent form we've seen throughout his Triple-A tenure with the Sounds. The first inning was quite effective and quite nice despite an ugly throwing error from rehabbing Luis Urias at the hot corner. The second inning was also quite nice. However, from the third inning onward it was a series of seeing eye weak contact after weak contact after weak contact hits. The hits just kept coming. When all was said and done, Gasser left after a mere 4 IP, 10 H, 1 BB, 4 K, 7 R, 5 ER. It was a deficit the Sounds never recovered from. As our very own @wiguy94pointed out: he didn't pitch particularly well but he certainly wasn't getting an ounce of luck either.

Three Quick Strikes:

1) Even when the Sounds are struggling as a whole, you can almost guarantee they'll be long ball fireworks. They did hit three homers, as the affiliate recap alludes to above. And, no ball was hit harder or hit further than, you guessed it, mash artist C Alex Jackson's rocket to straightaway CF. He may lack consistency or a refined hitting approach as a whole, but you'll be hard pressed to find a man who can routinely smash balls further:

2) INF Luis Urias' 0-for-4 outing very much had the feel of an early spring training affair. Toss in the ugly throwing error, and that point is further validated. The young and talented infielder is now 0-for-9 with 3 K in his two outings for the Sounds. Let's hit that panic button! 

3) RHP Ryan Middendorf's frustrating 2023 season continued with another paper cut multi-run outing (2 IP, 3 H, 1 BB, 1 K, 2 ER). He hasn't had any egregious blowout outings, but he's suffered far too many paper cut, multiple hit, multiple run relief appearances in 2023. He was one of my darlings of the 2022 season and, frankly, one of my favorite players overall. 2023 has been nowhere near as kind. He has to start limiting the number of base runners if he hopes to salvage his season.

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Final: Montgomery (Rays) 14, Biloxi 4
Box Score / Game Log

Game Notes 

Via the Shuckers' site, game details, please visit and review:

Shuckers Fall to Biscuits, 14-4, at MGM Park on Thursday

I continue to look for movement on RHP Tobias Myer's fastball. And, well, I continue to see far too much 'stillness' - currently, it's a pitch that leaves and arrives on a level plane. Gone, for me, is the feel good of those early outings - and those outing were fantastic, mind you. When a pitcher is getting hit this hard and when his fastball (and change-up) simply hangs over the meat of the plate, there are bound to be issues. I share this to say: I really don't know what the Brewers have here. The recent outings just haven't been all that impressive, unfortunately. 

Three Quick Strikes:

1) If we're going to anoint OF Jackson Chourio a top prospect in all of baseball, we're going to start needing to see more flashes in the very least. He looked every bit the part of an 0-for-4, 1 K performance tonight. He struck out on an off-speed delivery at least a good three feet outside the strike zone and in the dirt and to the back stop. It was a poor swing on an extremely poor pitch. Other than a nice (if dramatized) catch to deep center field, there really wasn't a single thing in Chourio's game to suggest he's ready to leave his ongoing slump. He has to be more selective. He has to learn to identify off-speed consistently. The BA dipped to 0.239 and the OPS to 0.658. 

2) Let's counter Chourio's ongoing struggles with INF Tyler Black's ongoing climb. He absolutely smashed another home run (his seventh on the season) off the scoreboard in right field. 

If the sole offensive question we had coming into 2023 was Black's power stroke, he's answering the bell and then some. He also nabbed his 24th stolen base in the middle innings. It's hard to imagine a Brewers future without Black smashing balls in the heart of the line-up.

3) With little else to celebrate in this blow-out, let's celebrate the fact RHP Kaleb Bowman tallied a strikeout in his Double-A debut. And, well, it was downhill from there for the young hurler. Don't look at the stat line. I beg you. Let's simply laud the fact Bowman was literally pitching in the German Bundesliga (!!) last season. Quite the jump. Let's hope he finds more footing in the Southern League. 

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Final:  Wisconsin 8, Cedar Rapids (Twins) 4
Box Score / Game Log

Game Notes 

Via the Timber Rattlers' site, game details, please visit and review:

Wisconsin Wins Third Straight with 8-4 Victory at Cedar Rapids

RHP Edwin Jimenez scuffled a bit in the very early going but, as he is prone to doing in 2023, he ultimately found his footing and gave manager Joe Ayrault and his teammates five solid innings. When all was said and done, Jimenez tossed 5 IP, 4 H, 1 BB, 2 ER, 5 K. His off-speed deliveries continued to be the cream of his crop. The early damage was done on heaters - they weren't bad pitches per se, but the Kernels bats were clearly sitting on the heater.

Three Quick Strikes:

1) As alluded to above, INF Eric Brown Jr. continues to put the very early season woes behind him. The swing adjustments are coming into focus and I'm consistently seeing patient AB's. Pitches are being fought off and near misses still end in productive AB's. Everything we are wanting to see from a first round pick is starting to rear its head. If we marry the improving bat with already elite defense, I think it's fair to say we can get excited. Let's simply hope it continues and, more importantly, let's hope he stays healthy for a good run into the summer.

2) We've seen RHP Edwin Jimenez mostly in the middle innings until tonight. His middle inning mate was none other than starting pitcher RHP Joseph Hernandez. Is this going to be an ongoing thing? Are Jimenez and Hernandez the jack of all trade long inning guys in Ayrault's staff? It's much too early to tell. This was an interesting wrinkle, however. Hernandez's sole blemish came on a two-run HR over the left field wall that was more like a protect me golf swing. It barely made it over the shallow porch in left field and, ultimately, amounted to little more than a blemish.

3) C/DH Darrien Miller started things off with a crucial double deep down the right field line. It was a key and opportune hit that got the T-Rats humming. This shouldn't be a surprise, however: Miller is scorching hot in May. After a 2-for-4 night with the key 2 rbi knock, Miller is hitting 0.326 with a 0.988 OPS in the current month. Zesty!

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Final:  Carolina 5, Down East (Rangers) 0
Box Score / Game Log

Game Notes  

Via the Mudcats' site, game details, please visit and review:

 

Misiorowski's 9 Ks & Avina's Homer Lead to 5-0 Win

 

RHP Jacob Misiorowski came out slinging the baseball with purpose in the first frame. Sitting 99-101 on the heater (whew baby!) while dazzling with a gorgeous breaking ball on two consecutive K's, it was clear: he was ready to compete. Nine up and nine down, 5 K, ready to compete. It's amazing how much better everything is with accuracy. And, folks, It just got better and better and better. When all was said and done, amongst the four Mudcats pitchers overall, the pitching staff managed to bring a no-hit bid into the ninth frame. Ultimately, they grabbed the shoutout as RHP Tanner Shears stranded the bags full with a fantastic display of ridiculously knuckling splitters.

 

Three Quick Strikes:

 

1) OF Jace Avina continues to improve his approach and output at the dish. You just love to see it. After a near missed smash double off the wall to deep right center (the wind was blowing in fiercely from center field on a cool night in Zebulon), he pulled a 103 mph sinking rocket over the wall in left field during his next AB.

All told, when the evening was over, Avina went 2-for-3, 1 HR, 1 BB, 0 K, 3 R, 2 RBI. He also nabbed his 4th stolen base of 2023.

 

2) You won't see it in a strictly numbers or box score approach, but INF Gregory Barrios is definitely stacking better AB's with a more patient approach at the plate. It's truly night and day from his very early season hitless woes. The batting average and the OPS remain unimpressive but tonight was exemplary of his improved approach. His 1-for-3, 2 R, 1 BB, 0 K, SB (10th on the season) evening was just solid all around. The numbers will come. Make no mistake, he's just getting comfortable and he is really impacting games.

 

3)  The Mudcats had the chance for the no-hitter when RHP Tanner Shears and his splitter/heater combo came to the hill in the ninth inning. Though Shears couldn't complete the deal, just as impressive was his ability to escape a bases loaded no out jam by striking out the side. His splitter sits 80-87 and has a ridiculously good knuckle ball spin rate. His heater rides quite nicely in the 96-97 mph range. He didn't close out the deal but he certainly turned some heads. He is having a fantastic 2023 to date.

 

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That's a wrap for this week Thursday's Minor League Brewers slate. Be sure to tune back in tomorrow while we see if RHP Logan Henderson can build on the fantastic start his last time out for Carolina. LHP Thomas Pannone will look to build more good things for the Nashville Sounds who will look to even the series versus the Cubbies. RHP Cameron Wagoner will attempt to continue walking on the comeback trail as the T-Rats try to keep finding that winning touch. And, in Biloxi, RHP Christian Mejias will look to rediscover some of the fine form he showed out of the Shuckers bullpen as a lead horse out of the starting gates for the Shuckers who sorely need another victory. Thank you for reading and, as always, thank you for supporting Brewers Minor League baseball. 

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[clancyphile]

Time to move Miller to first base and send him to Biloxi?

[igor67]

Unless my recollection is off Misiorowski has only really had anything like struggles during the innings he was extending himself deeper into the game. I would guess if he is going to have that type of command from tonight and the no-hit type stuff he won't be in Carolina the whole season.