Checking in on Milwaukee Brewers’ Top 2025 MLB Draft Picks

[Jason Wang]

Image courtesy of © Sam Navarro-Imagn Images

Round 1, Pick No. 20: 3B Andrew Fischer
Fischer had outstanding numbers in college last season, playing his final season with Tennessee and slashing .341/.497/.760 with 25 home runs over 292 plate appearances. His defensive abilities at third base raised some questions, though, and he signed for $3.5 million, far below the slot value of $4.27 million.

Fischer got some playing time as a pro in 2025, but things really took off for him this year. After being an imposing force on a surprisingly competitive Team Italy roster in the World Baseball Classic, he's torched minor-league opponents. He hit to a 170 wRC+ across 54 High-A plate appearances and has been similarly effective in Double-A thus far. His position on most prospect lists should continue to increase along with his impressive numbers; he's already climbed to fifth on our top-20 prospect list for the organization.

Currently slated to debut in 2027 according to MLB Pipeline, Fischer could breathe some offensive life into a position that has been one of the weaker parts of the lineup over the past few years. With the Brewers currently relying on the light-hitting talents of David Hamilton and Joey Ortiz, having someone with the slugging potential of Fischer at the position could be a meaningful boost to the team’s hitting production. This looks like a home run of a pick in the back half of the first round.

Round 1, Pick No. 32: SS Brady Ebel
Taken out of Corona High School in California, Ebel was teammates with fellow elite prospects Seth Hernandez and Billy Carlson. He suffered from some offensive regression in the spring, which lowered his draft stock, but the Brewers seemed excited about his other strengths like his baseball IQ, arm strength, and quality of contact. 

One big concern is his ability to remain at shortstop as he faces higher levels of competition. Many scouts anticipate that his lack of speed and agility could necessitate a move to third base, which would allow the best parts of his profile to shine.

Ebel has had encouraging results with Single-A Wilson this year, posting a 117 wRC+ over 344 plate appearances. The most notable statistic is a 20.1% walk rate, which has allowed him to maintain an on-base percentage of .404 despite a batting average of just .239. Additionally, despite concerns over his running ability, he's stolen 24 bases.

He’s 15th in this very strong, deep system, according to our latest update. It's a much slower burn than Fischer, but again, this looks like a win.

Round 2, Pick No. 59: LHP J.D. Thompson
Thompson wasn’t the most obviously appealing pitching prospect in the draft class, but he managed to make things work across three seasons at Vanderbilt. At just six feet tall, he isn’t the most physically imposing pitcher. Nor is he blowing past batters; his fastball sits in the low 90s. However, with excellent induced vertical break on his heater and some effective secondary offerings, he finds ways to get outs.

Unfortunately for Thompson, his first year of professional baseball has already been marred by injury. He got off to a late start due to a hamstring strain, but finally managed to make his first appearance for High-A Wisconsin in May. After pitching just 18 ⅓ innings, he was placed on the injured list again at the start of June and hasn’t returned. He's clinging to the 20th spot in our latest prospect rankings update.

Round 2, Pick No. 68: LHP Frank Cairone
Cairone was drafted out of Delsea Regional High School in New Jersey and was noted by scouts for having an impressive arsenal for a 17-year-old. His heater was already sitting at 95 mph and had great ride from a low release point. His slider is already spinning at nearly 3,000 RPM, and he's steadily developing his cutter and changeup. As a player out of high school, he has much to prove, but the Brewers seem excited about his upside.

He also made headlines after being involved in a serious car accident in January, but he seems to be well on the road to recovery. He finally got around to making his professional debut a few days ago, throwing one inning in the Arizona Complex League. It will take him quite a bit of time to be fully healthy and ramped up, but at just 18 years old, there’s no rush to get him anywhere fast.

Round 3, Pick No. 94: RHP Jacob Morrison
Morrison cut an imposing figure while at Coastal Carolina University, measuring in at 6-foot-8 and 245 pounds. His final year with the Chanticleers was exceptional, pitching to a 2.42 ERA and 3.56 FIP over 107 ⅔ innings thanks to a fastball in the mid-90s that has carry at the top of the strike zone. He does struggle with commanding his secondary offerings sometimes, but the shape is effective enough to avoid hard contact fairly well.

He has pitched 19 ⅔ innings for Single-A Wilson, with a 4.58 ERA and 4.58 FIP. Although opposing hitters are averaging just .171 against him this year, his 16.7% walk rate has become a glaring issue. 

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This doesn't look like a bumper crop unto itself for the Brewers, like (for instance) the 2023 group could prove to be. Then again, their most important wins in that 2023 class so far are guys whom they selected lower than the ones above. What does seem clear, already, is that last year's draft netted the team a player with star-caliber upside and charisma to match; an impressive young infielder with great ballplayer bloodlines; and a trio of intriguing arms. One year later, the 2025 class looks like further proof that the Brewers run the best scouting and development operation in the league.

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[JimmyC]

I hope that Andrew Fisher will ultimately wear Brewer blue and not be used as trade bait. Would be nice to have a homegrown power bat to add to Chourio, and now it appears Mitchell.

[biedergb]

6 hours ago, Jason Wang said:

This doesn't look like a bumper crop unto itself for the Brewers, like (for instance) the 2023 group could prove to be. Then again, their most important wins in that 2023 class so far are guys whom they selected lower than the ones above.

At the top of the draft it could be better than 2023, as Fischer is already hitting better than Wilken did in 2023, and Ebel if he can stay SS or 3B has more positional availability than Bitonti or Boeve.  Knoth is returning from injury and may be the key to the top 5 rounds given that Wilken is off prospect status, Boeve is a likely DH, Birchard is still trying to figure it out, and Woodward is slowly coming back from injury.

But 2023 was a new gold standard for the later picks (Pratt, Yoho, Letson, Adamczewski) as a super talented 4 some.  If Ragsdale, Owens, Hughes/Mills, Bentley/Roupe/Holden can recreate some of that magic, then this system can remain stocked for years