Brewers Minor League Link Report (5/7): RHP's TJ Shook and Manuel Rodriguez Dominate; Hicklen and Clarke Wow with Bats

Transactions:

• C Eric Haase was activated by the Nashville Sounds (from the Taxi Squad)
• 1B Tayden Hall was assigned to the Wisconsin Timber Rattlers from the Carolina Mudcats
• OF Reece Walling was assigned to the Carolina Mudcats from the ACL Brewers
• C/1B Wes Clarke was activated by the Biloxi Shuckers from their 7-Day IL
• 3B Brock Wilken was activated by the Biloxi Shuckers from their 7-Day IL
• OF Carlos D. Rodriguez was placed on the 7-Day IL by the Biloxi Shuckers (retroactive to 5/6)
• (5/6) RHP Kevin Herget's contract was selected by the Milwaukee Brewers from the Nashville Sounds
• (5/6) RHP Janson Junk was optioned by the Milwaukee Brewers to the Nashville Sounds
• (5/6) OF Chris Roller was sent on a Rehab Assignment to the ACL Brewers

Final: Sounds 9, Durham (Rays) 8

Via the Sounds' website, please be sure to click and read each of the affiliate write-ups as part of your season-long Link Report routine (believe me, it's worth it):

Late Rally, Clutch Hits in 10th Inning Propels Sounds to Victory at Durham - Brewer Hicklen Hits Go-Ahead Homer in 9th

Box Score / Game Log

We definitely witnessed that long recovery-road version of LHP Aaron Ashby today. It hurts to see these lines and the inconsistencies outing-to-outing but it is what it is: returning to competitive baseball off of serious shoulder injuries is anything but a known commodity. After looking much improved his last time on the bump, Ashby was back to all sorts of control issues: 3 1/3 IP, 7 H, 7 BB, 2 WP, 1 K, 2 HR, 4 ER. 86 laboring pitches with 46 strikes. This was definitely a rough outing and there's no other way to look at it. The road ahead is likely long and outings like this, unfortunately, are just part of the process. Let's just hope they become fewer and farther between.

Three Quick Strikes:

1) With 28 combined hits between the two squads, the Sounds were bound to have some impressive showings at the dish. Hicklen was the obvious headliner here with his first 5 RBI outing since 2021 (Double-A Northwest Arkansas), but there were several notable days at the plate. Five players, including Hicklen, had two knocks or more. 2B Vinny Capra tallied three knocks of his own. SS Yonny Hernández, 1B Noah Campbell, and 3B Owen Miller each tallied two hits apiece.

2) Given Ashby's abbreviated outing, hats off to the combined scoreless bullpen innings from LHP Darryl Thompson, RHP Ryan Middendorf, RHP Harold Chirino and RHP Enoli Paredes. Paredes picked up his team-leading fourth Save by closing the door in the tenth and final inning. And, yes, I know the ghost-runner scored but I'm considering it a scoreless unearned outing for Paredes. Do I mention 40-Man rostered RHP Corbin Martin conceded more runs? Do I mention Martin has conceded runs in 6-of-8 relief outings in 2024? Oh wait, I guess I just did. 

3) I remain extremely bullish on the prospects of RHP Harold Chirino. He is far from a finished product on the mound, as one might surmise with his K:BB numbers, but he has innate qualities to his pitches that you just don't see all that often. His pitches move. His pitches ride. He has velocity. For me, personally, 2024 is about staying healthy and continue to fine tune his mechanics. At 26 years old, I contend the future is very bright for this talented bullpen arm.

Final: Biloxi 5, Montgomery (Rays) 0

Clarke, Shook Combine for Dominant Night in 5-0 Shuckers Win - Former College Teammates Lift Shuckers to Shutout Win

Pre-Game Media Notes 

Box Score / Game Log

It's no secret around here: I love RHP TJ Shook. In a vast pool of overlooked Brewers prospects, Shook is definitely one of my shiny gems. Why do I feel this way? I've watched him pitch and develop from day 1 as a Brewers prospect. I've seen the growth. I know the tools. And, he's improving. Outside of a weakly hit flare single, with his infield shadowed 3B side, Shook was spotless into the sixth frame. 69 pitches. 56 strikes on his evening. One hit. Zero walks. Eight punch outs. Dominant stuff. This is a very good young pitcher, folks. Keep him on your radar. 

Three Quick Strikes:

1) I had to double take when I saw Ernesto Martinez Jr. adorning the center field grass. What a sight to behold. 6'6" and 250 pounds of agile man gazelle covering stretches of Earth a cheetah could only dream of. This was his first time covering deep center since 2021 (and for good reason - he's a classic first baseman). But, consider this: he also swiped his team leading sixth base of the season. What more does this worldly man have to offer? Stay tuned! 2-for-3 on the evening as he attempts to claw his way back toward the 0.300 mark. 

2) The Shuckers have somehow been incapable of fixing their camera issues and we are still left with painstaking views from behind home plate throughout these games. BUT, that doesn't mean it wasn't absolutely awesome to see 3B Brock Wilken back on the dirt next to third base. What a sight for sore eyes:

3) As the headline above indicates, this game was all about Shook and Clarke. And, given that, enjoy this 106 mph dart Clarke rocketed into the trees in left field to give his squad three extra inches of cushion to pad their lead. So great to have the big fella back and swinging the lumber:

* Game 2 begins Mid-Day tomorrow for a matinee (morning my time) as RHP Bradley Blalock looks to keep things churning*

Final: Wisconsin 4, Quad Cities (Royals) 1

Wisconsin Opens Series at Quad Cities with a Win - Timber Rattlers Pitchers Record 14 Ks to Beat the River Bandits

Box Score / Game Log  

Pre-Game Media Notes

As LHP Tate Kuehner gets more comfortable, his numbers start falling more in line with his overall arsenal. I told you in the past two reports of his past two outings: don't worry about the peripherals his stuff will definitely play. And here we are. 4 IP, 1 H, 3 BB, 1 ER, 6 K. It was a solid outing overall. In the outings ahead, I would personally like to see him throw more strikes but I'm not going to complain about these results. I'm simply curious to see if he can't work himself into the fifth and sixth frames. Is that even the intention? I'm unsure as of yet. There is definitely more work to be done but this was a solid next step.

Three Quick Strikes:

1) Just promote RHP Craig Yoho to Double-A already. My goodness. He is completely overmatching these High-A hitters. He and the Brewers simply need to see what that coveted Double-A jump will reveal. I simply want to see it!🤭 His 3 IP, 1 H, 0 BB, 0 R, 7 K evening was every bit as dominant as that would seem. It. Is. Time. You know it. I know it. We all know it: this is very clearly an MLB-caliber arm. The road to get there is the unknown. 

2) OF Luis Lara likely hit the hardest ball of his season when he smacked a high heater midway up the right center field wall in the top of the fifth frame. It was a sight for sore eyes. When Lara is at his best, he is swinging freely, aggressively, but with purpose and precision. Needless to say, it was a Lara smack of the ball that I hadn't seen in some time. Let's hope it leads to a fantastic series.

3) I've definitely noticed a bump in arm action, velocity, and precision from C Matt Wood so far in 2024. Will this last? It's hard to tell so early. But, tonight specifically, when he threw out the runner to end the bottom of the fourth inning, it was notable for two reasons: he saw the runner late so he had a delayed pop and didn't matter because he threw an absolutely perfectly placed throw for the bang-bang out. It was a standout play. 

 Final: Carolina 4, Fayetteville (Astros) 1

Mudcats Take Series Opener in Fayetteville 

Box Score / Game Log

I've discussed talented 18-year-0ld RHP Manuel Rodriguez for several weeks now. Tonight, however, was truly his early season opus. What a performance. We witnessed the first seven-inning starting pitching performance in the Carolina League since late July of 2023. He's 18 years old, folks. Everything I've said previously was in stellar form tonight. He's controlled. He's confident. He knows how to locate. He knows how to mix. He has higher RPM on his lower velocity heater - this projects very well down the road for obvious reasons. Like Shook above, just an absurdly good amount of strikes for such a dominant outing. His lone blemish was an oppo solo jack in the seventh frame. I continue to absolutely love watching this young man pitch. I look forward to watching him evolve as he ages. 

Three Quick Strikes:

1) OF Yophery Rodriguez is no stranger to meeting the moment in key spots. He's done it on several occasions already - both offensively and defensively - in his young professional career. You can't teach the 'It' factor. You really just can not. While his overall batting average and peripherals may not be wowing you overall as you scan box scores, make no mistake about it: Rodriguez has a special 'big moment' skill you can not teach. For example:

** Also 18 years old **

2) What RHP Craig Yoho is to High-A Wisconsin, RHP K.C. Hunt is to Low-A Carolina. Let's just get the paperwork signed and delivered: it is time to send this talented pitcher to High-A. 27 K: 4 BB on 16 1/3 scoreless innings of work. Let's make it a Hunt-for-Yoho promotional swap while we're at it. It's all there in the baseball ethers waiting to happen. I'm simply future casting and casting baseball spells, perhaps, but after another scoreless two innings tonight (while also picking up his first Save) I've more than seen enough.

3) With 1B Tayden Hall off to Northern pastures, we saw C Blayberg Diaz manning 1B for manager Nick Stanley and the Mudcats tonight. He performed admirably - even making a challenging chase and grab run down at the opponent's dugout in the middle innings. Jim posted some nice details in the Minor League Transactions page and I responded HERE, but from afar it certainly appears as though the organization might be giving intriguing young prospect Reece Walling some sudden action at 1B after his promotion. He's listed as an outfielder on the Mudcats roster page. He's listed as an OF (officially) on his MiLB player page. BUT, he was noted as a 1B on the Transaction Wire. Like the mysterious case of Tyler Black's official 2023 height listing, we now have the curious positional questions surrounding one Reece Walling. And this is your Minor League Deep Cut for the evening.

(5/7) ACL Athletics 10, ACL Brewers 4
Box Score / Game Log

(5/6) ACL Reds 7, ACL Brewers 3
Box Score / Game Log

As per usual with these Complex games, I'm going to offer some key insights in a short paragraph - I can not watch these games so have little to give you via my eyes. Though the young Crew are certainly scuffling in their extremely young season (0-3 after tonight's loss), there are always performances of note. Most notably on Monday, LHP Anferrny Reyes hit the ground running to start his second ACL campaign 1 2/3 IP, 1 H, 0 BB, 0 R, 3 K. I certainly look at his greater body of ACL work and consider him a lead future promotional candidate. In that same Monday game, though hits were certainly hard to come by, the offense managed to walk their way seven times to cross the plate. If we shift our attention to tonight's contest, three players stood out for me on offense: C Yannic Walther whose bat carried forth 2023 DSL momentum, INF Filippo Di Turri whose 2 BB 1 2B outing showcased the variety of ways he can get on base, and INF Tyler Rodriguez's surprising two hit night. I was peripherally intrigued with Rodriguez given his advanced BB:K ratio he showcased in last year's DSL season. It was nice to see him pop in the box score. RHP Isaiah Jackson K'd the side swinging in his lone inning of relief work. Jackson was essentially an UDFA lottery ticket the Brewers managed to scoop up late last July when they doubled their offer after the draft. Something tells me they may have something here in this athletic 22-year-old. Lastly, and not to be lost in this mini pitching recap, is the 1 2/3 IP, 0 H, 0 BB, 0 R, 4 K effort from RHP Felipe de Los Santos who is in his second ACL season with the Brewers at 21 years of age.  

Remember, the Shuckers are back at it mid day with RHP Bradley Blalock. All remaining games will be in the evening. Can RHP Patricio Aquino rediscover his form? Can RHP Tyler Woessner bring his Triple-A ERA below 40? Stay tuned!

As always, thanks for reading and thanks for supporting Milwaukee Brewers Minor League baseball and the many players deserving of our time and recognition. 

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