Jett playing primarily SS is 2026?

[TURBO]

According to Todd Rosiak of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, Brewers INF prospect Jett Williams said that shortstop “will be his focus heading into spring training.”

 

Williams was just acquired from the Mets as part of the Freddy Peralta trade last week. The 22-year-old also has experience at second base and center field and is “pretty comfortable at all three positions now,” but he’ll begin his Brewers career playing shortstop. That means that current starting shortstop Joey Ortiz, who was also acquired for a pending free agent starting pitcher, is on notice. Williams hit .262/.363/.465 with 17 homers and 34 steals between Double- and Triple-A last year and could push for MLB at-bats if he gets off to a strong start in Triple-A.

 

Source: Todd Rosiak

[adambr2]

Shocking that a .593 OPS may in fact not cut the mustard for an everyday player.

[wibadgers23]

I'm not sure how that will work down in Nashville with Pratt playing SS every day.  I assumed Pratt at SS, Jett at 2B and Lara in CF.

[Jim French Stepstool]

5 hours ago, wibadgers23 said:

I'm not sure how that will work down in Nashville with Pratt playing SS every day.  I assumed Pratt at SS, Jett at 2B and Lara in CF.

SS "Will be his focus heading into spring training" might be the equivalent of a D L Hall or an Aaron Ashby saying "Gee, I'd like to be a starting pitcher". It might've come after discussion with his new FO. It also might simply be his stated preference.

If it's the configuration you mentioned above and Quero stays in Nashville, that's a helluva middle-of-the-diamond for a AAA team.

[long ball]

Ya it definitely feels like there are some competing priorities here for the organization if the focus on SS for Williams truly is from the Brewers and not just the player. 
 

Made is the best prospect of the group. I assume he is at AA to start the year. Ultimately no one is in his way and they’d move other players around to accommodate him. 
 

we all assume Pratt would start in AAA, but here comes Williams. Pratt is much more likely to be a factor at SS for the brewers long term, but Williams is the one who has a better chance at providing Joey Ortiz insurance in 2026. They always could move Turang to SS and play Williams at 2nd if they pull the plug on Ortiz. However, Williams might also be the Garrett Mitchell injury insurance in CF as well. So ultimately it probably makes sense to have Williams see time at SS, 2nd, and CF. 

[Brock Beauchamp]

I mean, it makes all the sense in the world for this to be the plan heading into Phoenix. This is the time you spend six weeks evaluating if a player has a chance to stick to a premium position, or has to be relegated when the season starts.

[igor67]

It's also what they generally try and do, stack up a number of different options and then let the combination of development and injuries sort things out. Which I'm guessing means there is still a solid chance that Mitchell ends up influencing where Jett starts the season as well.

[Thurston Fluff]

His focus going into spring training does not equal plans to play mostly shortstop for the season. I think it makes sense to play a lot of short in spring given the Ortiz issues from last season. When the minor league season starts it'd make more sense to have him play all over IMHO. He should be preparing to play a variety of roles because we have no idea which role will be needed. If Ortiz plays well but Mitchell can't he could end up our main center fielder. If both Ortiz and Mitchell play well he could end up a super sub. Playing mostly short in AAA would probably not be the best way to prepare him for all possible roles he may end up having. 

[nate82]

Pratt could also be moved to 3B though Wilken is already there in AAA.

Pratt physically would probably be better at 3B.  I am not sure the Brewers share the same idea.  It could also allow Pratt to put on some more muscle as he wouldn’t have to be so lean to play at 3B.  May also help his power hitting if he puts on some more muscle and weight.  

[wiguy94]

I think this is probably a nothing burger. He will start out the year at SS but will play multiple positions. Brewers have listed him as an INF/OF post trade. 

[Jopal78]

They’re not going to have their 3rd best prospect (Williams) debut in the majors as  bench player. 

Mitchell and Ortiz are going to get another chance in CF and SS if for no other reason to try to rebuild value before the organization moves on.

As such, they’ll likely play Williams in ST everyday then option him to AAA to get regular playing time in CF. Lockridge moves to RF in Nashville

[mudbutt]

If Jett isn't playing CF because of not liking what they see out of Ortiz in ST or whatever, I think the likeliest and easiest thing to do is have him at SS in AAA and just keep Pratt at AA. There's not a much of a difference between AA and AAA these days and it's not like Pratt's bat earned him a no doubt promotion last year either. Then whatever happens in the season will happen but I assume then Pratt will be at SS at AAA later in the season ideally.

[Brewcrew82]

1 minute ago, mudbutt said:

If Jett isn't playing CF because of not liking what they see out of Ortiz in ST or whatever, I think the likeliest and easiest thing to do is have him at SS in AAA and just keep Pratt at AA. There's not a much of a difference between AA and AAA these days and it's not like Pratt's bat earned him a no doubt promotion last year either. Then whatever happens in the season will happen but I assume then Pratt will be at SS at AAA later in the season ideally.

I'm not saying you're wrong, but that would likely come at the cost of Jesus Made reps at SS in AA fwiw. 

[mudbutt]

Maybe wishful thinking on my part that I can go see him again in Appleton. :) Definitely will be buying some cold weather early season tickets just in case.

[Jim French Stepstool]

4 minutes ago, mudbutt said:

If Jett isn't playing CF because of not liking what they see out of Ortiz in ST or whatever, I think the likeliest and easiest thing to do is have him at SS in AAA and just keep Pratt at AA. There's not a much of a difference between AA and AAA these days and it's not like Pratt's bat earned him a no doubt promotion last year either. Then whatever happens in the season will happen but I assume then Pratt will be at SS at AAA later in the season ideally.

Sure, if it wasn't for Made then Pratt starting out repeating Biloxi wouldn't be the worst idea in the world. But Made certainly looks ticketed for AA, and even though he's capable of being moved it wouldn't be prudent to move him off SS at this point.

The good news is that this is a nice 'problem' to have.

[wiguy94]

9 minutes ago, mudbutt said:

Maybe wishful thinking on my part that I can go see him again in Appleton. :) Definitely will be buying some cold weather early season tickets just in case.

With Made getting invited to big league camp, you can forget about him going back to Appleton to start the season. In the 2020s the Brewers haven't invited any players who to big league camp that started the season below AA. 

[Jim French Stepstool]

2 hours ago, nate82 said:

Pratt could also be moved to 3B though Wilken is already there in AAA.

Pratt physically would probably be better at 3B.  I am not sure the Brewers share the same idea.  It could also allow Pratt to put on some more muscle as he wouldn’t have to be so lean to play at 3B.  May also help his power hitting if he puts on some more muscle and weight.  

If Pratt were to move, 3B seems to be the spot. But as you said I think Wilkin is ticketed there at Nashville. Also his bat heating up would be much more of a concern if moved to a corner. And, there's Fischer.......

[TURBO]

21 minutes ago, mudbutt said:

Maybe wishful thinking on my part that I can go see him again in Appleton. :) Definitely will be buying some cold weather early season tickets just in case.

Not a chance that Made or Pratt start out in Appleton in 2026.  

[liveforoctober]

What an amazing problem. Speaks to the crazy depth of our farm right now. Latest rankings after the trade have Blake Burke as our #30 prospect and that's wild - he had a really good year last year.

Anyway, in my head you don't disrupt the rocket ships in your system if you have any. The Brewers have one for sure in Made and one possible in Pena. It makes sense to me that you move other pieces to accommodate their timeline. Neither one of those guys has any use for Appleton pitching anymore. They belong in AA at a minimum. Figure out the rest of the guys after that.

Dream scenario for MKE is Ortiz has a good camp, Pratt has a GREAT camp and Williams proves he can play short. Then another big league contender suffers an injury and they call us desperate. I'm not predicting or hoping for it ... but I think a good Jett Williams spring training probably puts Pratt on notice. Made is coming and Williams is here. 

Another side quest - I've never thought about Ortiz at 2b as a utility guy. We know he can play 3B and SS. IS it possible Jett wins the job and Ortiz could fall into the Mona role?

[Jim French Stepstool]

20 minutes ago, liveforoctober said:

What an amazing problem. Speaks to the crazy depth of our farm right now. Latest rankings after the trade have Blake Burke as our #30 prospect and that's wild - he had a really good year last year.

Anyway, in my head you don't disrupt the rocket ships in your system if you have any. The Brewers have one for sure in Made and one possible in Pena. It makes sense to me that you move other pieces to accommodate their timeline. Neither one of those guys has any use for Appleton pitching anymore. They belong in AA at a minimum. Figure out the rest of the guys after that.

Dream scenario for MKE is Ortiz has a good camp, Pratt has a GREAT camp and Williams proves he can play short. Then another big league contender suffers an injury and they call us desperate. I'm not predicting or hoping for it ... but I think a good Jett Williams spring training probably puts Pratt on notice. Made is coming and Williams is here. 

Another side quest - I've never thought about Ortiz at 2b as a utility guy. We know he can play 3B and SS. IS it possible Jett wins the job and Ortiz could fall into the Mona role?

The way I see it Jett plays SS in 2026 only if needed--which would involve Ortiz struggling in March. My gut feeling is that the type of spring training Ortiz would have that would involve him losing the job on opening day, would have to be much worse than many fans expect.

If it were to happen Ortiz could handle all three INF positions just fine.

[True Blue Brew Crew]

Jett is the closest SS in their system to the majors and they need to know if he can handle the spot in the event of an injury to Ortiz. I don't think there's any more to read into than that. Later in 2026 there's every bit of chance that Pratt or potentially even Made become the next man up at the position while Jett still holds the on deck spot at 2nd or CF

[Turning2]

Pratt sure has fallen out of favor quick after just one somewhat offensively disappointing year at AA. He was the new SS golden boy just 2 years ago. Have to wonder what the sentiment will be about Made if he has a similar AA season this year. 

[Jopal78]

40 minutes ago, Turning2 said:

Pratt sure has fallen out of favor quick after just one somewhat offensively disappointing year at AA. He was the new SS golden boy just 2 years ago. Have to wonder what the sentiment will be about Made if he has a similar AA season this year. 

A sub .350 slugging percentage will and should raise questions about the future potential of the bat. 

[sveumrules]

24 minutes ago, Turning2 said:

Pratt sure has fallen out of favor quick after just one somewhat offensively disappointing year at AA. He was the new SS golden boy just 2 years ago. Have to wonder what the sentiment will be about Made if he has a similar AA season this year. 

Fallen out of favor with whom? He's landed on multiple Top 100 lists so far this winter.

Outside of 3 games at 2B during his first season on the complex Pratt has played exclusively SS throughout his minor league career with defense as his carrying tool. Jett has played mostly SS with some CF and 2B thrown in as well.

In the likely scenario both are at Nashville to start the year I'd imagine Cooper will get four games a week at SS with the other two at 3B/2B, while Jett picks up those other two games at SS with a mix of CF/2B/maybe even some LF thrown in.

They're really just two different prospects. Jett has the more advanced bat at the moment, and Cooper is more of legit SS defender. 

Chourio's 109 wRC+ at AA wasn't overly impressive (Pratt posted a 107 wRC+ last year) and it didn't do much to dim Jackson's shine because a 19 year old (or even a 20 year old like Cooper) holding their own in the Southern League is a pretty big deal. If Made only puts up a wRC+ in the 110's somewhere I'd imagine he'll still be regarded as one of the best prospects in MLB this time next year.

[sveumrules]

6 minutes ago, Jopal78 said:

A sub .350 slugging percentage will and should raise questions about the future potential of the bat. 

The average batter in the 2025 Southern League was 23.7 years old with a .340 slugging percentage.

Cooper Pratt was 20 years old with a .348 slugging percentage and plus defense at SS.

As a 21 year old in AA Brice Turang slugged .385 versus league averages of 24.5 years old and a .393 slugging percentage.