Brewers Minor League Hitter of the Month - April 2024

[Michael Trzinski]

The first few weeks of the 2024 season have been completed, and it is time for this Brewer Fanatic staff writer to unveil his Minor League Hitter of the Month for April!

Several of the top prospects missed the top eight, such as Yophery Rodriguez, Cooper Pratt, and Luis Lara, et al. Fear not, for you will most assuredly see these names and more in the coming months. But for April, here are the top Brewers Minor League Hitters.

 

Image courtesy of Joshua Sumrall, Biloxi Shuckers

HONORABLE MENTION
C Matt Wood – Wisconsin Timber Rattlers – 13 H, .283/.404/.457 (.861), 138 wRC+, with 2 doubles, 2 home runs, 8 R, 8 RBI, 10 BB, 7 K.

The left-handed hitter was grabbed by the Brewers in the fourth round of the 2022 draft from Penn State. Wood is no stranger to hitting .300, as he led the Big Ten conference in 2022 with a .379 average. And last year, the catcher was rated as the fourth-best hitter in April in the 2023 version of this article.

Wood is not on the Brewers Top 30 prospect list, but he is opening some eyes, especially with the injury suffered by Jeferson Quero. He appears to be a .250-.260 hitter, but his 16% walk rate, coupled with his 14% K rate, make him appear as a solid prospect. Wood did hit 16 homers in 388 at-bats in college, so it is possible, with experience, that the power will come.

IF-DH Tyler Black – Nashville Sounds – 30 H, .303/.393/.525 (.919), 136 wRC+, with 1 double, 3 triples, 5 home runs, 20 R, 18 RBI, 13 BB, 16 K, 3 SB, 1 CS.
Black is the #4 prospect in the Brewers organization, and much is expected of him. His hit and run tools both grade out at 60, but the Brewers need to find a spot for him, as the infield/designated hitter slots have lots of candidates. Black got called up to Milwaukee on April 30 and made his major league debut, doubling and singling in his first two at-bats against Tampa Bay. He finished 2-for-4 in the game, hopefully a positive portent of things to come this summer. If you listen closely, you can probably hear cheering from the Milwaukee fans no matter where you live. 

OF Noah Campbell – Biloxi/Nashville – 17 H, .309/.472/.436 (.909), with 3 doubles, 2 triples, 7 R, 6 RBI, 16 BB, 22 K, 2 SB.
Campbell strikes out a lot, but he walks a lot too. He started the year in Biloxi but moved up to Nashville after two weeks. Similar to last year’s journey, but if he can perform well in Nashville, he might get a look as a ‘super utility’ guy in Milwaukee, as he has literally played every position while in the minors. Campbell could be the 2024 version of Cesar Tovar.

THE TOP FIVE BREWER HITTERS FOR APRIL
#5 SS Gregory Barrios – Wisconsin Timber Rattlers – 27 H, .365/.412/.541 (.952), 156 wRC+, with 10 doubles, 1 home run, 12 R, 21 RBI, 5 BB, 12 K, 4 SB, 3 CS.
Barrios was signed during the 2020-21 signing class, receiving a $1 million bonus. He was one of the top shortstop prospects in Venezuela. Barrios is known for having a good glove and in April stepped it up at the plate and was one of the top hitters at A+ Wisconsin.

Barrios stole 32 bases last year for Carolina, so look for his SB number to climb as he acclimates to the league. He earned a recent Player of the Week honor in the Midwest League.

#4 OF Brewer Hicklen – Nashville – 29 H, .330/.450/.545 (.996), 159 wRC+, with 8 doubles, 1 triple, 3 home runs, 20 R, 12 RBI, 17 BB, 29 K, 13 SB, 2 CS.
The 28-year-old Hicklen was signed by a free agent by Milwaukee last November as ‘organizational depth.’ He is great at drawing walks (15%) and awful at striking out (27%). Hicklen has some pop and could probably hit 15 homers in the big leagues if he could make contact well enough to stay in the line-up. One thing for sure, the dude has some wheels for a big guy (6-foot-1, 220 pounds). He stole at least 35 bases from 2018-2022 (except the Covid year) and has a lifetime minor league success rate of 85%. 

A seventh round pick in 2017 out of Alabama-Birmingham by Kansas City, the righty swinging Hicklen had a cup of coffee in 2022 for the Royals, but when his four at-bats all ended in strikeouts, they apparently gave up on him. He was sold to the Phillies in August 2023 and lasted all of 36 ABs for Triple-A Lehigh Valley before getting released.

Will we see Brewer playing for the Brewers this summer? Time will tell.

#3 OF-2B Isaac Collins – Nashville – 23 H, .311/.429/.662 (1.091), 170 wRC+, with 10 doubles, 2 triples, 4 home runs, 18 R, 16 RBI, 16 BB, 16 K, 2 SB, 1 CS.
The diminutive (5-foot-8, 185 pounds) Collins was selected by Colorado in the ninth round of the 2019 draft. After three seasons, whether the Rockies weren’t happy with Collins’ .221 batting average in 2022, or if it was a roster numbers game, he was made available in the Triple-A phase of the Rule 5 draft and the Brewers snagged him in the first round. 

Collins stole 29 bases last year for Biloxi and earned a brief appearance in Nashville last year, and that’s where he began this year. After a cool start in April, Collins got hot and over the last week raised his batting average from .265 to .311. He can play any outfield spot and has played as many games at second base as he has in the outfield. Collins may not be a Gold Glove infielder, but he is adequate there and his IF/OF versatility should make him attractive to the Brewers, as well as his ability to hit from both sides of the plate.

#2 1B-DH Tayden Hall – Carolina Mudcats – 27 H, .397/.500/.544, (1.044), 200 wRC+, with 6 doubles, 2 triples, 14 R, 9 RBI, 15 BB, 13 K.
Hall was selected in the ninth round of the 2022 draft by the Brewers from the State College of Florida. He was drafted as a catcher but was switched to first base and has shown he is a capable defender with a good arm. Hall could probably play a corner outfield spot in a pinch.

He performed well early last year, as he earned honorable mention in the BF April 2023 Minor League Hitters of the Month ratings. Hall is expert at drawing walks, as his 18% BB rate will attest. Conversely, his 16% K rate shows he has good contact skills. 

That brings us to his power, or lack of it. In 330 minor league at-bats, Hall has yet to hit a home run. The fact that he is 6-foot-2, 215 pounds makes one believe that he will develop some in-game power before too long. Hall did hit five round-trippers in the Australian Baseball League last winter, so the potential is there.

#1 IF-DH Mike Boeve – Wisconsin/Biloxi – 31 H, .449/.556/.623 (1.179), with 6 doubles, 3 triples, 12 R, 9 RBI, 18 BB, 12 K, 1 SB, 1 CS.
The Brewers second round pick in 2023 is moving nicely up the organizational ladder. Ranked #14 on the Brewers Top 30 Prospects list, he is at his third stop in the farm system. Despite having only 137 plates appearances at Advanced-A Wisconsin, he has not at all been overmatched at Double-A Biloxi.

The lefty swinger has a great K-rate of 13% and has drawn walks at a rate of 20% this year, both the great numbers of a superior contact hitter. Other than his hit tool (60) and arm tool (50), all his other grades are in the 40-45 range. Although Boeve (pronounced Bo-vee) is not known as a fast runner, he has three triples and a steal this year. 

Boeve can play third base, second base, or first base, but might not have enough arm for the hot corner. But if he keeps putting up big numbers at the dish and keeps moving up, the Brewers will find a spot for him, whether it is in left field, first base, or DH.

Please feel free to agree or disagree with the rankings. Putting them in order was quite difficult. Let us know what you think!

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Hicklen and Collin’s are making the most of the opportunity to play at AAA for another organization, and Milwaukee has been adept at finding these players who can play at AAA and could be injury fill in for the bigs if needed.

Hall is a good bat with surprisingly little power for HR given his size. But he and Wood continuing with some success this year can really help boost the stock of the ‘22 draft.

Baez has also been a hitting machine. 
 

Look forward to the pitching picks for April.