Brewers Minor League Link Report (6/15): Rookie Squads Drop a Pair, After Early Deficits Prove Insurmountable

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Word got out on these moves yesterday, but in case you missed it, the team made them official on Monday:

Game Action:

ACL Rockies 9, ACL Brewers 5
Box Score

The ACL Brewers showed plenty of fight in the late frames on Monday night, but a brutal opening act proved too much to overcome in a 9-5 loss to the ACL Rockies. Milwaukee’s rookie squad found themselves in an immediate 4-0 hole after a rocky first inning from starter Dariel Jaquez. Jaquez had as many walks and runs allowed (four) as he had batters retired on the night.

The Brewers' bullpen did excellent work in the middle innings to keep the game within reach after Jaquez exited. Ma’Kale Holden had his longest outing of June, working 3.1 hitless innings with four strikeouts. Holden did issue four free passes, part of 11 total walks issued by the Brewers’ staff on the night. Josue Toledo also chipped in two hitless innings, with a walk and two strikeouts.

Despite the early deficit, the Brewers’ bats finally woke up in the 7th inning to make a game of it. Roderick Flores ignited the offense with a pair of doubles on the night and also scored twice. Center fielder Brailyn Antunez led the line with a solid three-hit performance, and also drove in two runs. Milwaukee chipped away to bring the score to 4-3 in the 8^th inning. Unfortunately, the momentum evaporated quickly in the bottom of the frame when reliever Jhosep Ospino ran into trouble, culminating in a crushing, two-out grand slam that put the game completely out of reach.

Even with a two-run rally in the top of the 9th, the Brewers simply ran out of runway. It was a frustrating night of "what-ifs," especially considering Milwaukee actually out-hit the league-best Rockies eight to five.

DSL Cubs Blue 5, DSL Brewers Gold 3
Box Score

The DSL Brewers Gold squad fell 5-3 to DSL Cubs Blue on Monday. The offense got rolling early in the top of the first inning when Osiris Ramirez drove in Ricki Moneys on a fielder's choice to strike first. Ramirez, along with Moneys and Matthew Moses, was one of three Brewers players with two-hit games.

Another silver lining for the offense was the continued brilliance of first baseman Jefer Lista, who lined an RBI double in the second inning to briefly tie the game. Lista now has a 1.426 OPS with 10 RBI in seven games this season. The Brewers threatened late in the seventh when Moses laced an RBI single to cut the deficit to two, but a costly double play at the plate put out the fire. Moses now leads the team with 11 runs driven in on the young season.

On the mound, starter Derlin Garcia took the loss, tagged for five runs (three earned) over 3.2 innings while serving up two home runs. However, the bullpen provided a massive bright spot to close out the game. Right-hander Joan Gonzalez was absolutely stellar in relief, shutting down the Cubs over four scoreless innings, surrendering just a single hit while striking out six batters to keep the Brewers within striking distance until the final out.

I'll be back with you Tuesday night as we recap the debuts of Fischer and Adamczewski in Biloxi.  We'll see if the pair of prized prospects can help get the Shuckers over the line to a first half title this week. Of course, Nashville is still in contention for a first half title as well and we'll have a full seven game slate of play on Tuesday.  

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Current Milwaukee Brewers Organization Batting Stats and Depth
Current Milwaukee Brewers Organization Pitching Stats and Depth

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