Brewers Minor League Hitter of the Month - April 2023

Similar to the big league team, a number of Brewers minor league hitters got off to a fast start to their seasons during the month of April. We will take a look at the top five position players as well as a few other notable performances.

We will begin with the group of honorable mentions. A group of three hitters that had a very solid month, but could not quite crack the top five.

Honorable Mentions
IF Eddy Alvarez - Nashville Sounds - 27 H, .370/.484/.616 (1.100 OPS), 176 wRC+, with 8 doubles, 2 triples, 2 home runs, 20 R, 9 RBI, 14 BB, 15 K, 8 SB, 1 CS.

Alvarez had a fantastic April. As a 33-year-old in AAA, it didn’t feel quite right to include the former Olympic speed skater in the top 5, but he does deserve a mention for having a fantastic month. He provides interesting depth if the Brewers fall into a bad injury situation in the infield.

IF Ben Metzinger  - Wisconsin Timber Rattlers - 11 H, .275/.500/.375 (.875 OPS), 173 wRC+, with 1 double, 1 home run, 7 R, 7 RBI, 18 BB, 16 K.

The Brewers 7th Rounder in 2022, Metzinger had a very solid month at the plate, walking more than he struck out and reaching base in half of his plate appearances. The combination of a lack of extra base hits and being a bit older for his level kept him off the main list.

C/IF Alex Hall - Wisconsin Timber Rattlers - H, .233/.327/.605 (.932 OPS), 158 wRC+, with 1 double, 5 home runs, 7 R, 10 RBI, 6 BB, 11 K.

Alex Hall hit as many home runs in April this year as he had in the 2021 and 2022 seasons, combined. Known mainly for being called up to the majors for one game during a COVID outbreak, Hall is not getting regular playing time in Appleton yet, but he followed up a great showing in the Australian Winter League with a really nice April!

THE TOP FIVE APRIL HITTERS
#5 SS Daniel Guilarte  - Carolina Mudcats - 21 H, .309/.427/.382 (.809 OPS), 138 wRC+, with 1 double, 2 triples, 10 R, 11 RBI, 13 BB, 20 K, 12 SB, 3 CS.

Guilarte was an international signing by the Brewers in 2021, and is somebody the organization appears to be very high on internally. If you have a chance to watch a Mudcats game, it is very evident why. Guilarte can really pick it at shortstop, as well as third and second base, playing errorless baseball the entire month while spending time at all three spots. He has clean actions, good range and a strong arm. These rankings don’t take defense into account, but if they did he may be a bit higher up. 

Offensively, Guilarte has a patient approach that may border on being a bit too passive at times. It shows up in the very solid walk totals, though it also shows up a bit in the batted ball profile. A bit of indecisiveness can lead to a profile such as Guilarte’s, in which he is only pulling the ball 15% of the time. Despite that, Guilarte has appeared to make a bit of a jump in terms of elevating the ball more often. His line drive rate is up from 15% in 2022 to 25% in April of 2023, and that 10% was taken directly from his ground ball rate. This will be an important thing to monitor for Guilarte moving forward. 

Guilarte showed a very good feel for getting the bat to the ball in April, with a swinging strike rate of only 7.5%. This and the fact that he does a good job of getting the barrel to the ball helped him hit 18 singles despite the somewhat questionable batted ball profile. He was then able to use his athleticism and speed to steal 12 bases in 15 attempts.

An increase in the regularity that he lifts the ball is unlikely to suddenly have Guilarte showing much home run power, but it could help him tap into a little more gap to gap power, where he will be able to use his aforementioned above-average speed to turn singles into doubles and doubles into triples (like the video above). A jump in extra base hits could have Guilarte moving up prospect charts very quickly, April was a great start to his first season in full season ball.

#4  C Matt Wood - Carolina Mudcats - 14 H, .292/.433/.458 (.891 OPS), 156 wRC+, with 5 doubles, 1 home run, 7 R, 8 RBI, 11 BB, 10 K, 1 SB.

Wood was the Brewers 2022 4th round pick and was seen as a high floor catcher who should be able to stick behind the plate, with a very sound approach at the plate. He also has an ability to drive the ball for extra base hits. His defense was very solid in April, as he threw out nine would-be base stealers. There have been 20 successful attempts as well, but with the current base stealing environment, a caught stealing rate over 30% is fantastic. 

After only logging five professional plate appearances last year, due to injury, Wood got himself off to a nice start in Carolina. Over the first month, Wood showed both of the previously mentioned offensive traits off by having more walks than strikeouts, as well as connecting for six extra base hits, including a home run. Wood had an incredible line drive rate of 38%, which is almost certainly unsustainable but is a great sign that his swing path is in a very good place at the moment.

At 22 years old, Wood is a bit older for the Low-A level, so it would not be a huge surprise to see him make his way to Appleton at some point this season. More performances like he put together in April will help push that envelope.

#3 IF/DH Keston Hiura - Nashville Sounds - 27 H, .325/.383/.687 (1.070 OPS), 163 wRC+, with 3 doubles, 9 home runs, 16 R, 24 RBI, 7 BB, 25 K, 1 CS.

Keston Hiura is a bit of a divisive figure within the Brewers fanbase, but what we all know is that Hiura is capable of being a good major league hitter. What is a little less obvious is whether he can do it consistently and whether he can keep the strikeouts down to a somewhat reasonable level. In April, Keston was able to keep the K% under 30% and showed the big time power that could allow him to still make a really nice impact at the major league level, though likely as a DH only. 

Hiura hit nine home runs in April to go along with a .325 batting average. He still could probably stand to draw more walks, but if you hit .325, walks definitely become less important. There has been another noticeable change in his stance from last season to this season, continuing to simplify his load and his stride. It has appeared that pitchers have had a slightly tougher time beating him at the top of the zone thus far, but it’s still shown to be a weakness that pitchers know they can exploit. 

The hope should be that this month was a big confidence builder for Hiura. The bad news is that we did see similar results for Keston in AAA last year, yet the strikeout rate would remain too high once he returned to MLB. A few more months of everyday playing time and consistent work may be needed before giving Hiura another shot at the major league roster, but April was a very good start from him in terms of trying to force his way back up to the big leagues.

#2 IF/OF Tyler Black - Biloxi Shuckers - H, .250/.456/.482 (.938 OPS), 165 wRC+, with 1 double, 4 home runs, 15 R, 13 RBI, 17 BB, 14 K, 10 SB, 1 CS

The Brewers Competitive Balance Round A selection in 2021, Black hits the ball pretty hard, he doesn’t strike out much and he is willing to take walks. In the infield his defensive actions can get a little rushed and his throwing arm isn’t the strongest or most accurate. Because of this Black’s bat will likely be what carries the profile, along with some pretty good baserunning instincts and hustle. 

In April, Black’s bat definitely held up its end of the bargain. He started out his season with an OPS of .938 to go along with four home runs. These numbers are due in part to the fact that Black has been able to improve his batted ball profile so far in 2023, only hitting the ball on the ground 33% of the time in April. Getting under the ball more has helped contribute to his four home runs in April, which equaled his total from 2022, in just over 1/4 of the plate appearances. 

Black had a positive walk to strikeout ratio in April, which is something he has now done since he began playing at High-A. Quite the feat for a player who has some pop in the bat, as well as an ability to spray the ball to all fields. He showed off that ability in April pulling the ball 34% of the time and going to the opposite field 39% of the time. His power will most likely come to the pull side, but he did hit one of his home runs to left field, which would be a welcome addition to his arsenal.

To go along with the bat, Black was also 10-for-11 on stolen base attempts in April. While he isn’t the fastest player in baseball, he does have above average speed and he uses good baserunning instincts and his overall intelligence to swipe bases. With the new rules, the Brewers are a more aggressive team and their minor league teams have certainly followed suit.

Considering Black will turn 23 during the season, and with his pedigree as a pure hitter, another month or two similar to the one he put up in April and he may find himself in AAA, knocking on the doorstep to the big club. 

#1 IF/OF  Luke Adams - Carolina Mudcats - 10 H, .227/.469/.500 (.969), 176 wRC+, with 3 doubles, 3 home runs, 7 R, 8 RBI, 16 BB, 15 K, 5 SB, 2 CS.

The Brewers 12th round pick in the 2022 draft. Adams was drafted out of Hinsdale Central High School in Illinois and spent the first few weeks of the current 2023 season at 18 years old, before turning 19 on April 24th. Standing 6’4, 210 pounds, he comes with a rare blend of patience at the plate to go along with his power and surprising speed for his size. He also plays a very solid third base where he not only has the arm to handle the position, but has shown an early ability to make off-platform throws, which is not easily done at 6’4. That said, it would not be a huge surprise to see Adams mix in some corner outfield appearances as well, just in case he is not able to continue to make third base work.

Adams began his career in 2022 with an 11 game stint in the Arizona Complex League. In that small sample, he was able to give a glimpse of what he is able to do with the previously mentioned tools, coming out of those 11 games with an OPS of 1.075 and a wRC+ of 196 to go along with nine steals, only being caught once. Beginning 2023 as one of the younger players in full season ball, he once again got off to a fantastic start. 

When tuning in to watch him play, it quickly becomes clear that Adams plays with fire and passion on the field. To be clear, he isn’t out there showing up opponents or umpires, nor has he been seen sulking after a poor plate appearance. He just looks energized to be out there playing. Adams' great month was highlighted by a two home run day on his last day as an 18 year old and you can see some of the fire after the first home run.

When taking a look at the statistical side of the equation, one thing that stands out besides the slash line, a common theme amongst those on this list, is a positive Walk to Strikeout ratio. Adams has a violent swing, yet he shows an impressive amount of patience at the plate. The key for Adams is going to be continuing to find the balance between passive and patient, otherwise that may be something that pitchers will be able to take advantage of as he begins to climb the organizational ladder. 

Putting up five stolen bases also stands out for a guy his size, though it should be mentioned that the baserunning doesn’t start and stop with stealing bases. He has shown to be an aggressive base runner in general, that looks to take an extra base if he can, as well as one that will be going hard down the line on even the most routine ground balls.

It is still a small sample, but Adams is beginning to look like a player that will make a leap in the prospect rankings, and a big leap at that. 

Please feel free to agree or disagree with the rankings. Putting them in order was quite difficult. Age and prospect standing were the deciding factors when settling some of the closer calls. Let us know what you think! 

Interested in learning more about the Milwaukee Brewers' top prospects? Check out our comprehensive top prospects list that includes up-to-date stats, articles and videos about every prospect, scouting reports, and more!