If You've Been Sleeping on Luis Lara, Wake Up

[rstuedem945]

Image courtesy of © Dave Kallmann / Milwaukee Journal Sentinel / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

The Brewers have received a lot of national attention for their farm system, with top prospects Jesus Made, Luis Pena, Jett Williams, Cooper Pratt, Brandon Sproat and Andrew Fischer all ranking in the top 100 prospects, according to MLB.com. In addition to all the wealth the Brewers have at the top, their No. 12 prospect, Luis Lara, is having an extremely hot start to his season at Triple-A Nashville. Is it sustainable, and when could we see Lara in Milwaukee? 

Lara was signed by the Brewers for $1.1 million in 2022, and the native Venezuelan entered this year after spending the entirety of last season at Double-A Biloxi. In that pitcher-friendly environment, he hit .257/.369/.343, with 32 doubles, 3 triples, and 2 home runs in 612 plate appearances. Notably, Lara struck out only 99 times, while walking 86 times. His speed is also a factor: he stole 44 bases in 2025. He played in 136 games, 126 of them coming in center field, with the other 10 coming as the designated hitter. 

A switch-hitter, Lara has had fairly balanced splits in his brief pro career. Lacking power from both sides, he put up similar overall numbers at High-A Wisconsin in 2024, regardless of the handedness matchup. Last season, though, that changed. He hit .260/.382/.343 in 482 plate appearances as a lefty, while hitting .248/.323/.342 in 130 plate appearances as a righty. He generally shows better plate discipline from the left side, but pulls and lifts the ball more often when swinging right-handed. Unfortunately, he's always shown so little power on both sides of the plate that the more optimal contact profile from the right side didn't yield much value for him. He was much better, last season, as the more patient version of himself, batting lefty.

This couldn’t have gotten off to a better start for the 21-year-old, though. Through his first 13 games with the Sounds, Lara hit .367/.456/.551 in 57 plate appearances. He's already matched his homer total from last year (2). He has 8 walks and 8 stolen bases, and has only struck out six times. His 90th-percentile exit velocity is 102.6 MPH, and while that's still a low number, it hints at a bit more pop than he's shown in the past. He's doing all of this at a young age, given that he's playing in the highest level of the minor leagues.

How much thunder he can find in the stick will determine how far Lara goes in the majors. Just 5-foot-7, he doesn’t have the prototypical build of a power hitter—or any big-league hitter, for that matter. Brewers right fielder and sparkplug Sal Frelick is famously small, but he's two inches taller and 23 pounds heavier than Lara. 

Any player performing well in Triple-A at such a young age is close to the major leagues. Lara feels relatively far away, because the Brewers have so much outfield depth already on their 40-man roster, but with Jackson Chourio and Christian Yelich hurt, the door is open a crack. Lara has been an elite defender throighout his climb through the minors. He won a Minor League Gold Glove Award last year in the outfield. That, too, will be subject to testing and observation once he reaches the big leagues, where size can matter more even in the field, but if he keeps playing the way he has so far and playing time opens in center field this summer, Lara could arrive in the majors ahead of schedule. He's doing everything he can to position himself for that opportunity, at the very least.

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[Ben Lepak]

Lara has been one of the more pleasant surprises in the early going. I know the Brewers aren't going to rush him up to The Show, but I feel he would be an upgrade over Blake Perkins right now. Perkins has looked feeble at the plate, and I think Lara might already be the better fielder.

Lara does have a .432 BABIP this year and a .170 ISO, which is double his career number. It'll be interesting to see what kind of production he can sustain as the season goes on

[Snoebird]

7 hours ago, Ben Lepak said:

Lara has been one of the more pleasant surprises in the early going. I know the Brewers aren't going to rush him up to The Show, but I feel he would be an upgrade over Blake Perkins right now. Perkins has looked feeble at the plate, and I think Lara might already be the better fielder.

Lara does have a .432 BABIP this year and a .170 ISO, which is double his career number. It'll be interesting to see what kind of production he can sustain as the season goes on

The arrival of ABS to MLB would benefit Lara as well. Perkins just ain't cutting it anymore. 

[CheezWizHed]

Lara and Perkins are so similar, it is kind of funny.  Switch hitters. GG type glove in CF.  Light on power.  Decent OBP (Perkins in the minors at least).  The 5" in height is probably the biggest difference. 

But with Perkins at age 29 - not old but over his prime years.  Those prime years only had him as an ~80 OPS+ hitter.   So, there isn't much juice left to squeeze unless you want a defensive late-inning replacement and PR.

I'd guess Lara gets a chance in the second half of 2026... or makes the team in 2027 with Perkins moving on. 

[igor67]

As exciting as Lara has been I kind of want AAA pitchers to have a few chances to try and figure him before getting too confident that he has really taken a nice step forward. Absolutely if he is hitting above .300 with the rest of that profile he is a great addition for sure, but I'd still rate that as an if.

[Rick Daltons Flamethrower]

How long do the Brewers control his contract before he becomes a free agent? Does calling him up for a stint in the majors this year accelerate the length of their control?

[Outlander]

21 minutes ago, Rick Daltons Flamethrower said:

How long do the Brewers control his contract before he becomes a free agent? Does calling him up for a stint in the majors this year accelerate the length of their control?

He is already past the point where he can get a year of service in 2026 unless he would be top 2 in ROY voting so it would be after the 2032 season. Of course a new agreement or lockout could change everything.

 

[Rick Daltons Flamethrower]

thanks for the info. That helps.... 2032 is a long time away.