Brewers Minor League Link Report (6/14): Mudcats Mired in the Muck; Severino & Baez Open for Business in the Desert

Game Balls:

• RHP Tanner Shears gets the nod for a fantastic first outing at High-A. He fought adversity. He overcame some blown calls. He flashed dominance against the best team in the Midwest League.
• INF Brice Turang gets the nod for his welcome back three-run blast to dead CF. This proved to be the game-winning hit:
• LHP Thomas Pannone gets the nod for another fantastic start for the Sounds paving the way to victory. He's been a god send for manager Rick Sweet to date.
• INF Jhonny Severino did it again. His 4th long ball was a two-out two-run kind. What a season so far. He is currently tied for the HR lead in all the ACL and he is 4th in OPS. 
• RHP Jason Alexander gets the final nod with his extremely effective 2nd rehab outing (more below).

Transactions:

• RHP Taylor Floyd was traded to the Minnesota Twins as the PTBNL portion of the RHP Trevor Megill trade
• LHP Eric Lauer was optioned to the Nashville Sounds from the Milwaukee Brewers
• RHP Cam Robinson was designated for assignment by the Milwaukee Brewers
• RHP Ryan Middendorf was assigned to the Biloxi Shuckers from the Nashville Sounds
• OF Sal Frelick was activated by the Nashville Sounds off their 7-Day IL (previously rehabbing in the ACL)
• INF Abraham Toro was optioned to the Nashville Sounds by the Milwaukee Brewers
• RHP Robert Stock was released by the Nashville Sounds

Final: Nashville 6, Gwinnett (Braves) 3
Box Score / Game Log 

Game Notes * (game notes are unchanged from 6/13 - at time of publish no new Notes have been published online) *

Via the Sounds' site, game details, please visit and review:

Turang's Homer Powers Sounds Past Stripers

LHP Thomas Pannone is quietly putting forth one of the better unheralded seasons of any starter in the system - a pleasant, if surprising, well, surprise in mid June. He seems to get better with every start. Tonight was certainly no different as he gave the Sounds everything they needed and more as they clung to a 1-0 lead into the middle innings. When all was said and done, Pannone put forth 5 IP, 2 H, 1 BB, 3 K, 0 ER innings. It took only 72 pitches to hand the ball to his bullpen.  

Three Quick Strikes:

1) My hope for Jesse Winker, as he likely finds his way back to the Brewers, is he looks this comfortable at the dish for the MLB club. He looks so relaxed and is swinging so easy - to really good results to boot. He is quickly making the Sounds a better watch on a nightly basis. Truly. He finished his night 1-for-3, 1 R, 2 BB, 0 K. As the post-game recap article above points out:

Quote

In six games on assignment, Winker is batting .375 (6-for-16) with five runs, three homers, three RBI and more walks (6) than strikeouts (2).

My hope for OF Sal Frelick is he begins making contact like he did to close 2022. Don't get me wrong, the two free passes in the lead-off slot are wonderful, but in his first game back I saw plenty more weak contact. Let's get back to those hard hit line drives of yesteryear!

2) If you were looking for a feel good RHP Matt Bush rehab outing, unfortunately, I can not give that to you. I saw several of the same issues that have plagued his time with the Brewers. The final line won't reflect this, per se, as the run scored was credited as a passed ball. But, he just wasn't all that sharp. Bush finished a mere 2/3 IP, 1 H, 1 BB, 1 K, 1 R. He'll look to sharpen his tools moving forward. If you're looking for an INF Eddy Alvarez highlight, I got you. Easily one of my favorite Sounds in 2023. A true pleasure to watch in the batters box: 

3) It's no secret I am a fairly big fan of RHP Thyago Vieira. I love his story, his journey, and when he's on he is lights out. By and large, he has been fantastic for manager Rick Sweet and the Sounds as a high-leverage bullpen arm. However, if we're being neutral with our assessments of Brewers prospects it's definitely fair to point out:  in June, Vieira has definitely hit a patch of uneasiness. This is really the first mild case of hiccups we've seen but we have seen it so it bares mentioning. After tonight's 1 IP, 2 ER, 2 H, 1 BB, 1 K outing, Vieira has given up the following in his four outings in June: 5 1/3 IP, 9 H (yikes), 2 HR, 2 BB, 9 K, 5 ER. For as good as he was previous to June, his June has gotten off to a rocky start. Relief work, especially high-leverage work, is a thankless job and numbers can swing to extremes in a hurry. All I am saying is this bares tracking moving forward. 

Bilox vs Montgomery Game 2 was Postponed:

Game Notes 
 
Via the Timber Rattlers' site, game details, please visit and review:

Loons Take Game Two 2-1 with Two Unearned Runs

Looking to build off an incredibly productive 5-1 start to their ongoing road trip, the Timber Rattlers were looking to their new ace, RHP Jacob Misiorowski, to keep the good times rolling. In addition to such promise on the hill, we have the ongoing new look approaches at the dish - 10 walks and 11 hits yesterday showcasing these new looks. What better place to challenge these new trends than at first place Great Lakes?

Misiorowski struggled with the strike zone early - he was scaling back his heat to the 95-97 range as a result. He simply wasn't able to consistently locate any of his pitches as he walked both batters to lead off the second frame. By and large, these weren't egregious misses, but they were misses none the less. Misiorowski ultimately lasted 3 IP of 1 H, 2 BB, 1 WP, 3 K, 0 ER ball.

RHP Max Lazar came on in relief and really pitched a quality outing and ultimately deserved a chance at a victory if not for INF Eduardo Garcia's uncharacteristic (in 2023) throwing error on a fairly routine play up the middle. That play 'should' have ended the frame. Unfortunately, it extended it and led to the Loons only two runs of the game. Winning runs at that.

Three Quick Strikes:

1) RHP Tanner Shears saw his first action in High-A and what a scenario to see that action. Trailing 2-1 to the best team in the League, on the road, why not toss the young man to the fire? He plunked two batters when pitches sailed up and in - a heater and a breaking ball (which is a nasty offering, by the way). He was touching 94-95 on the heat with his split fingered two-seam grip. All in all, you had to love he overcame an ump blowing two beautiful strikes at the knees; his own loss of control in those brief moments; and a wild pitch. He escaped unscathed and, frankly, was dominant in spells against the best team in the Midwest League. This was a very successful High-A debut. Let's hope it continues!

2) 3B Ben Metzinger made a really nice play to end Shears’ mini-jam and it was not an easy charging play - this needs to be acknowledged as it was clutch. However, tonight he looked nearly entirely lost at the dish. It was eerily reminiscent of the month of May in which he hit 0.185 with a meager 0.500 OPS. He wasn't seeing the ball. And, when he was, the contact was negligible at best. The body language was not good - as you can imagine. In every key spot, he failed to deliver contact that left the infield. He finished his day 0-for-4 with 3 K. He struck out with Miller on first base with two down in the 8th. He popped out to foul territory next to 1B with the bases juiced and nobody out in the 6th. Those are not winning AB's. He'll look to rebound from this performance and get back to what has been working throughout the first half of June. The T-Rats need that bat.

3) I could lament the loss of the feel good C/1B/DH Alex Hall story since his return stateside after truly fantastic play this winter in Australia. But, alas, I'll merely hint at that 😪. INF Robert Moore is back to that beautiful compact and level swing he showcased throughout his 2022 season. When Moore is at his best swinging the bat, his swing is extremely compact; tight; crisp; and quick. He made great contact throughout the night and made a game of things with his solo bomb over the RF wall. It was a no-doubter from contact with the casual immediate bat drop to adorn the smash. He also lined out to LF with another beautiful swing - it was a 'trust the process' winning fly out. This is a really positive turn and I am absolutely here for it.

Final: Augusta (Braves) 6, Carolina 5
Box Score / Game Log 

Game Notes 
  
Via the Mudcats' site, game details, please visit and review both game summaries:

Perez and Sibrian Homer in 6-5 Loss in Augusta

RHP Logan Henderson had his worst outing of 2023 and, as it seems to be amongst Brewers owned clubs at present, it came at the absolute worst time. The Mudcats have now lost eight games in a row - those first place days from just a mere two weeks back feel much further away than they are as the Carolina League first half comes to its close. Henderson completed a rough 3 IP with 4 H, 4 BB, 5 ER, 1 HR, and 1 K. A very uncharacteristic outing (all five runs came in the first two frames) when his club needed his best. This is how the cookie is indeed crumbling lately for the upstart Mudcats.

Three Quick Strikes:

1) In 2022 we distinctly saw a vastly different version of 1B Jesus Chirinos during his birthday month of July and then throughout August. This season is playing out eerily similar to 2022, if not worse, in the early going. His 0-for-4 showing today with 4 K is a bit of an exclamation point on an extremely disappointing first half. This is especially disappointing considering he absolutely built atop his late summer of 2022 surge with a truly fantastic 2022/2023 Winter League. Playing for Zulia of the Venezuelan Winter League, Chirinos pumped out 111 PA, 0.326 BA, 0.841 OPS, 23 BB, 20 K, 1 2B, 1 HR, 9 R, 19 RBI. I was extremely excited to see him start with Wisconsin. Now, I'm just extremely confused.😂

2) Even though the Mudcats are indeed struggling to right the ship, there are always positives. OF Hedbert Perez has swung a remarkably better bat of late reminding us of the immense talent he still possesses when he holds the lumber. 

After an extremely sluggish first two months of 2023, Perez is hitting to the tune of 0.263 BA, 0.830 OPS, 2 2B, 2 HR, 2 R, 7 RBI, 5 BB, 10 K, 1 SB. In a line-up missing its best bats, Perez is definitely doing his part to fill part of that void. 

3) In a series where the Mudcats have come out of the gates with an 0-2 mark losing by a combined two runs, it behooves us to look at missed opportunities. Through these two losses, the young Mudcats are a combined 2-for-15 with RISP. If they're going to turn things around, let's start there. They owe that to a pitching staff who has been atop the leaderboards throughout the first half.

ACL Brewers 7, ACL Athletics 5
Box Score / Game Log

With OF Sal Frelick back leading off for the Nashville Sounds, it was tantalizing INF Jhonny Severino leading off in the dry air of the Southwest. And, boy, is he on one. He continued his recent tear with a two-run bomb in the second frame - his 4th long ball on his young ACL season. I don't know about you all, but, I'm starting to allow myself to get excited.

RHP Jason Alexander took the hill for his second rehab outing after a not so pretty first one on June 9th. He pitched a scoreless, 1 K first frame and he ultimately finished his evening with a very successful 3 IP, 2 H, 1 BB, 5 K, and 0 ER. That's a great start for Alexander as he looks to get back to the higher levels. Unfortunately, this impactful start didn't appear to rub off on ACL Crew middle relievers as the combination of RHP's Darling Solano and Samuel Dario walked eight men in the ACL A's five-run sixth inning. Whew. Thankfully, trusty lefty LHP Osbriel Mogollon was there to help the ACL Crew escape that dreadful inning without further damage. Mogollon continues to showcase his merits with a fantastic job not only shutting down that threat but shutting down any possible threat thereafter. He finished the affair with 3 2/3 IP, 4 H, 1 BB, 4 K, 0 ER.

If we're going to keep touting Severino, and rightfully so, we need to include his stablemate INF Juan Baez who continues his scorching start - before exiting for unknown reasons early (an inning after a caught stealing 3B) in a 'defensive substitution', Baez ended his day 2-for-3 with 1 2B and 1 R. What these two infielders have done in the early going is stunning. Take a look at that box score though, fans, there are intriguing storylines happening up and down that line-up. The ACL Brewers move to 5-2 overall and are tied atop the ACL Central with the Reds.

We are back to a jam-packed full seven game slate tomorrow as I return writing duties to my cohorts. We'll see RHP Caleb Boushley try to keep the good times rolling in Nashville. RHP Carlos F. Rodriguez will try to lead his teammates to a 2-0 start in Montgomery. RHP Cameron Wagoner will try and deliver another solid outing in a very challenging environment at Great Lakes. The DSL Crew return to action in the early going. The ACL Crew will fill the late bill. The Mudcats will look to remind themselves what winning feels like. As always, thank you for reading and thank you for supporting Brewers Minor League baseball.

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