Brewers Minor League Link Report (4/23): Shuckers Roll, Timber Rattlers Come Up Short

[Jim Goulart]

We learned that only Mother Nature can truly slow down the Carolina Mudcats. But a bunch of that team's offensive mojo made its way south to Biloxi, where it was a fun highlight-filled evening. The Timber Rattlers seem snake-bit (that's quite the circular reference, right?), as that team's struggles continue. Let's visit what was a rather light night of activity on the Brewers farm.

Image courtesy of BrewerFanatic

Transaction:

• Milwaukee Brewers signed free agent RHP Steven Duran to a minor league contract.

Duran is a 16-year-old out of the Dominican Republic; he'll turn 17 in July.

 

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Postponed, rain: Durham (Rays) at Nashville

The teams will play a doubleheader Thursday beginning at 5:35 Central. Brandon Woodruff is scheduled to make his next rehab start. It almost assuredly will happen in Game One.

 

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Biloxi Pre-Game Media Notes 
Final: Biloxi 10, Montgomery (Rays) 1
Box Score and Game Log

Via the Shuckers' website, game details, and we encourage readers to review affiliate write-ups as part of their Link Report routine:

Offense, Pitching Dominate in Shuckers 10-1 Win over Biscuits - Warren, Spain record 3-hit, 3-RBI nights, Hunt earns win with 6.0 innings, bullpen tallies 3.0 scoreless frames

Latest Biloxi Pre-Game Interview Archives

Did anybody else read that sub-headline as Warren Spahn? 

Prior to this win, the team's largest margin of victory was in a 6-1 win over Birmingham on the 15th. The five-run 7th allowed for a coast to the end, and the three bullpen arms obliged after KC Hunt's strongest of four starts.

Luke Adams turns 21 years old as you read this (Thursday) and is celebrating his taking a 3-2 lead over Darrien Miller in the critical HBP race. Adams also doubled and walked as he looks to get on track after a rough start.

Has 26-year-old Zavier Warren earned the "Mayor of Biloxi" moniker yet? 2020's 3rd round pick first reached the city in the latter half of 2022 for 28 games and has had full-time residency since, never having been placed on an injured list. The Brewers have rights to Warren in 2026 as well as he hopes his ability to play the corners on the dirt and grass (no third base yet in 2025) eventually nets him that Nashville bump.

Cooper Pratt and Brice Turang have defensive parallels in 2025. Pratt committed his third error in 15 contests; he had eight in 87 games in 2024.

The Shuckers are 5-2 in the seven games OF Garrett Spain has played in since his arrival from Nashville (1.004 OPS with Biloxi).

On the surface over at Baseball-Reference, Kaleb Bowman is not anywhere near the 500 K's noted here, but that's because some of those punchouts happened in far-off lands. It's highly recommended that you revisit his pre-Brewers overseas baseball odyssey.

As you might imagine, there's a plethora of video highlights via the team's "X" feed for this one. Enjoy, including ending the game in style. Pulling up the game archive on MiLB.TV this AM, and all video and sound production is in sync and in glorious HD. The video highlights look just fine (no more tilted backdrop from the CF camera view!), so it's puzzling that there's been issues with the live feed via MLB.TV. Hopefully resolved soon enough. 

 

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Wisconsin Pre-Game Media Notes (download link)
Final: Cedar Rapids (Twins) 3, Wisconsin 2
Box Score and Game Log

Rattlers Drop Close Game to Kernels - Wisconsin held to three hits in 3-2 loss

Chris Mehring makes the most of little in his summary - he aptly described the Kernels' scoring plays, you can watch each here and here.

As for this wild highlight catch by Yhoswar Garcia, the reference by Chris here is primarily to wrestler Brock Lesnar, easy enough to find if interested.

 

It was 75 degrees and partly cloudy at first pitch - in other words, the Wisconsin batters can't refer to Midwest weather factors much longer.

Tayden Hall, Matt Wood and Blake Burke represent the only US-based (drafted) position players on the roster, reflecting a noticeable talent gap primarily due to the organization's recent draft priority on pitching and high school-level players.

Do you think the now 5-12 Rattlers are itching for reinforcements later this summer? That reply has me thinking yes. Nice to have the split-season standings, right?

It's going to be a while before some of those stud Mudcats sprinkle up however, so the current crop of Rattlers needs to buckle up and make the most of the opportunities provided before they are overshadowed once those promotions eventually happen.

Recently turned 21-year-old catcher Eric Martinez made his Timber Rattler (and full-season) debut with a pinch-hit groundout.

This was the first time RH starter Ryan Birchard has gone five innings in his pro career. Nice to see the 2023 5th rounder healthy and effective. RH reliever Aidan Maldonado turns 25 next month and has been pretty much perfect over seven scoreless innings (0.43 WHIP). He's aiming to join what is currently a Biloxi relief corps on an elite run.

Find an interview via "97.3 The Game" at the 23:00 minute mark with Rattlers President Rob Zerjav, talking about the new ownership in Appleton and discussing the impact top prospects can make with the fanbase.

 

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Postponed, rain: Carolina at Columbia (Royals)

The teams will play a doubleheader Friday, start time TBD.

 

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All five games Thursday (two in Nashville) are evening tilts, which is just fine, as you'll migrate straight from the big-league club's late afternoon contest to Brandon Woodruff and the rest of tonight's slate.

Organizational Scoreboard including starting pitcher info, game times, MiLB TV links, and box scores
Current Milwaukee Brewers Organization Batting Stats and Depth
Current Milwaukee Brewers Organization Pitching Stats and Depth

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