Brewers Minor League Link Report (8/12): After DSL Squads Both Lose, the Stateside Brewers go 4-0 in a Night Filled with Intrigue

Transactions:

• OF Yhoswar Garcia was released by the Wisconsin Timber Rattlers - his loss in center field was felt immediately and we wish him all the best regardless of this unfortunate news
• OF Josiah Ragsdale was assigned to the Carolina Mudcats from the ACL Brewers
• LHP Jose Meneses was assigned to the Carolina Mudcats from the ACL Brewers
• INF/OF Adam Hall was placed on the 7-Day IL retroactive to 8/10
• INF Eric Brown Jr. was activated from the 60-Day IL by the Biloxi Shuckers
• OF Braylon Payne was activated from the 7-Day IL by the Carolina Mudcats
• C Nick Kahle was transferred to the Development List by the Nashville Sounds
• RHP Julian Merryweather was assigned to the Nashville Sounds
• 1B/3B Andrew Fischer has been assigned to the Wisconsin Timber Rattlers from the ACL Brewers

Before I get into this report, and before I trend mostly positive, I do want to say: it's hard to be more confounded by sloppy routine mistakes across the system in a 4-0 evening than I was tonight. We saw botched grounders, botched pop ups, botched catches, botched throws etc. It was quite ugly in moments and it felt like a cascade. And, yet, the young men put more runs on the board throughout. Baseball is a very very strange game. As it all was happening the Brewers were adding run after run after run. We have to get right with the baseball gods and the system has been doing its part - even if it is painful at times. Now that I've said my piece, let's get into the victories.

Final: Nashville 5, Durham (Rays) 4

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):

Sounds End Seven-Game Skid Behind Quero's Five RBI - Berroa Swipes Three and Scores Three

Box Score/Game Log

Game Notes

RHP Chad Patrick has a sudden case of 'Matt Bush'. He has a home run problem. I've watched his past two starts and, let me tell you, he is hanging pitches. Two Starts. Six home runs allowed. Yikes. Last Tuesday it was the 'Ghost of Joey Wiemer'. Tonight, he surrendered four more long balls. These were not wall scrapers. These were mashed. How about this inside belt high cutter that simply hangs more than it cuts:

That was 116.2 mph off the lumber. Phew. I won't belabor you with more opponent highlights. His mistakes were hit yard to all fields. They were all nukes. And yet, as he does, he still managed to give his team a quality start amidst a victory. Baseball is a weird game. The silver lining here? These were all solo shots. Another silver lining? He only walked one batter to eight punch outs while only allowing six pokes - it was an all or nothing affair. Of late, Patrick is regularly sitting 93-94. Can he ever sit 95 mph? I do wonder. I really do wonder. He is on the precipice. The four-seamer averaged 93.8 mph tonight. He maxed at 95.2 mph on the pitch. His yearly average, to date, is actually 94.1 mph. It feels like a bump up from 2024. Yet, this feels a touch on the low side for where he may end up in a year or two. Anyhow, with the quality start, and with his teammates pouring in five throughout his innings of work he picked up the victory and 'improved' to 1-3 on his season. Baseball is a weird game. And, six hits? It could have been worse:

What. A. Play. Mr. Zamora, take a bow.

Three Quick Strikes:

1) CF Steward Berroa was here, he was there, he was everywhere. His play out on the center field grass and his meaningful work in the lead-off gave you the first real full-game look of what the Brewers envisioned when they added him to their 40-Man. 2-for-4, 3 R, 1 BB, 1 K, 3 SB. He also tracked several fly balls with ease to all parts of the alleys. He made the extremely difficult look absurdly easy. Level of difficulty on this grab? I'd say a 9-of-10:

2) A five RBI night for C Jeferson Quero? Absolutely yes. The young man is more-and-more back with each successive game removed from his shoulder surgery of 2024. 2-for-3, 1 R, 5 RBI, 1 HR. The home run? I can confidently, very confidently, say it was the hardest hit; longest; steepest launch angle ball Quero has ever hit as a Brewer (don't fact check me!). 107 mph off the lumber. 34 degrees of launch. Clouds were kissed:

Man, I swear that was at least 110 mph. They still have no distance on that ball. It is rumored to have entered orbit.

3) The rest of the Sounds line-up outside of Berroa and Quero? 3 H, 4 BB, and 11 K in 29 PA. Yikes. Thankfully, we got a glimpse of Ernesto Martinez Jr's thunder with his 112.5 mph double into the right field corner. Other than that? Not a whole lot cooking. LHP Brian Fitzpatrick saw some better results than his debut. He walked his first batter in the seventh before inducing a check swing ground out to the right of the mound. He then saw 1B Bob Seymour, on a night where he was hitting everything, tomahawk a high heater up and in for a single cracked down the LF line. Not a whole lot you can do about that. It wasn't flawless but it's a building block.

Final: Biloxi 7, Columbus (Braves) 6

Pratt, Spain Lead Shuckers to Walk-Off Win over Clingstones - Spain Ties Single-Season OF Assist Record

Game Notes

Baseball is a beautifully weird game. We had massive mammoth shots in the Nashville vs. Durham contest; we had several home runs at Keesler Federal Park in Biloxi; and, yet, the Shuckers won on the backs of a 59 mph jam shot flare follwed by a 70 mph single up the middle. The Brewers Way is multi-faceted and does not protest speed limits.

We are two games into the RHP Jaron DeBerry Double-A experience. It is quite a fantastic ride. As I watch RHP Brett Wichrowski struggle with his control and any semblance of consistency as his season progresses, it's quite something to see DeBerry step up to Double-A and just pound the zone attacking hitters. 6.0 IP of 4 H, 1 BB, 6 K, 1 HR, 3 ER work. That's quality and that's back-to-back impact outings for DeBerry who is sporting healthy numbers across the board in his early Southern League work. 81 pitches thrown. 54 strikes. Other than a rough first frame, it is quite easy to say: he was in control throughout. What an absolutely pleasant surprise we Brewers Minor League Fanatics are getting late in the regular season.

Three Quick Strikes:

1) OF Garrett Spain has clear flaws in his hitting game. But, one thing you can never challenge is his athleticism, effort and his heart as a baseball player. He's truly a fantastic corner outfielder - he has decent range bolstered by a cannon of an arm. He also has a surprising amount of pop. His two long balls tonight pushed his season total to eleven. He still strikes out a touch too high for my liking at roughly 28.6% of the time (compare that to a 7.69 % BB rate) and he doesn't hit for average (career 0.205 hitter to date). BUT, he does so many winning things on a baseball diamond it's easy to see why managers put him in the line-up every day. He's a winning baseball player despite his glaring flaws. I've enjoyed his season quite a bit and will continue to do so.

2) 2B Eric Brown Jr. looked like a player who hadn't seen Double-A action since April. It was a mixed bag of 0-for-4, 2 K work at the dish, a routine error fielding that could have proven much more costly, and a fantastic relay throw that should have been an Assist. Unfortunately, it had a little too much gas on the bounce and C Matt Wood could not gather it in cleanly:

That had the innate potential to be a special play. Instead it was a go-ahead RBI double.

3) SS Cooper Pratt set a new career-high with four RBI's. None more important than the game-winning 70 mph workmanlike walk-off single. However, what we're looking for is more pull shots like this first clip:

We Pratt fans needed a night like this - the second half has not been all that kind at the dish. It's an encouraging sign. Can Pratt get hot heading into the playoffs? Let's hope so.

Final: Wisconsin 4, Great Lakes (Dodgers) 3

A Great Home Debut for Trio of Rattlers - Peña, Made, & Smith Impress in 4-3 Win Over Great Lakes

Game Notes

RHP Travis Smith hasn't really found his strikeout pitch at the High-A level but I've still quite liked this newer more improved version of his overall package. After some minor tweaks to his mechanics, Smith has pretty much reached a new level of impact as a starting pitcher. This is now three consecutive months with a WHIP of 1.24 or lower - this is a big development. He's also seeing quite a bit more impact with his BABIP numbers via back-to-back months with a 0.180 BAA and a 0.229 BAA in his two High-A August starts. The contact is less meaningful of late. So, when we see a 5 2/3 IP line of 5 H, 2 BB, 1 WP, and 2 ER? We rejoice. He's reached a new level. There are more levels to get to. 73 pitches and 48 strikes. 10 groundouts to just four fly outs. Smith is on the up-and-up. With the movement he already has within his arsenal, I am extremely interested to see what version of Smith we will be watching after this upcoming off-season.

Full-Game Highlights:

Post-Game Podcast:

Three Quick Strikes:

1) 2B Luis Peña had a defensive first inning he'd likely want to forget. And, even amidst some routine errors fielding and catching the ball, he still mad an electric one legged throw across his body to nab a base runner who had rounded too far off third base for the final out. It was a special type of throw. He followed that up with a 2-for-4, 1 R, 3 RBI, 2 K, 1 HR day at the dish. He also took another bag but that was after a throwing error to second base during the successful steal. Impacting winning baseball. Peña continues to showcase eye-popping raw talent on a routine basis. There may not be another player in all of Minor League baseball who has boosted his prospect stock in 2025.

2) CF Kaylan Nicasia had a night he'd like to forget. Pushed into covering the center field grass with the release of Yhoswar Garcia (noted above) and the recent promotion of INF/OF Eduardo Garcia to Double-A, Nicasia struggled with routine errors throughout. He was charged with solely one error on his evening. If we're being honest, he had three snafus. He also went 0-for-3 with 3 K at the dish and I do believe all strikeouts were of the standing and looking variety. It was not pretty. Let's hope he bounces back in the days ahead.

3) LHP Jesus Broca is finding new levels to his arsenal as this season progresses. Picking up his fifth Save of his season, he was also routinely touching 94 mph on his high-riding four-seamer. Given his very good curveball and his already plus change-up, we suddenly are seeing an entirely new conversation emerge around this talented 21-year-old Mexican lefty. Putting men on base freely continues to be a problem. But, the peripheral stuff within his toolkit is what keeps us dreaming. Major progress has happened with Broca within the 2025 season. I've enjoyed watching the progression - the prospect game with the prospect game. What more is in store here? I'm excited to find out.

Final: Carolina 7, Fayetteville (Astros) 5

Game Notes

RHP Melvin Hernandez was back to his sublime work atop the bump: 5.0 IP of 2 H, 2 BB, and 6 K work. His off-speed stuff was really moving like we haven't seen in his past handful of outings. He also was working with fairly tight zone as interpreted behind home plate. It continues to be a marvel watching him pitch in 2025 - the wiry bowl-legged 19-year-old Nicaraguan righty standing 5'11" and maybe 160 dripping wet is just dealing. The change-up and breaking balls continue to lead but the real story here is a young man who simply knows how to pitch. This skill should not be overlooked.

Three Quick Strikes:

1) 2B Josh Adamczewski continues to quiet all the noise around him while putting hitting clinic after hitting clinic on tape. Tonight was no different. 2-for-2, 1 R, 2 RBI, 3 BB, 1 3B. What more is there to say here? Really. What more? Folks. FOLKS. We are looking at a 0.358 hitter with a 1.037 OPS in nearly 200 Low-A PA's. The ability he has to turn and barrel is unmatched in the system:

We'll trust the process here. We know he's suffered some absolute freakish injuries over the past year plus. When he's healthy? You will be very very hard pressed to find a better pure hitter in the entire Brewers system. He is definitely that good. My biggest curiosities at present: will he be sent to the AFL to continue to amass innings and AB's under his belt? And, if he is sent, does he finally get an opportunity to diversify his defensive positions? Is that even in the cards?

2) How refreshing is it to see CF Braylon Payne back atop the batting order and giving us a 0-for-1, 2 R, 1 RBI, 3 BB, 1 SF evening? I absolutely love this type of return. Nothing forced. Fouling off pitches straight back. Staying competitive in counts. Making pitchers work. In a briefly scary moment, he was plunked in the side of his right rib cage on a failed pick-off attempt back at first base. That was most definitely what we did not want to see after the recent throw off his head led to his most recent IL stint. 

3) Is there a better short-term evolution than RHP Jose Nova? I don't really think I can think of one off the top of my head. It is truly hard to describe to you the transformation we've seen over the past month but it is very very real. Nova has become a ninth-inning guy. He picked up his third Save (4th SVO) but, more importantly, he once again had zero traffic on the bases. He once again had zero wild. 1.0 IP, 0 H, 0 BB, 2 K, 1 SV. You likely hear me wax poetic on players like Nova with raw tools that lack refinement throughout every season - RHP Yerlin Rodriguez comes to mind or long-injured RHP Quinton Low or now released RHP Jesus Rivero. But, what Nova is doing speaks to that coveted 'next step'. Since July 19th, Nova has pitched 8 1/3 innings over seven relief appearances. He has allowed two hits. He has walked one batter. He has struck out 14. He has picked up all three of his Saves. This is electric. Take notice. I said it after outing number one back on June 22nd: He has the tools but can he harness them? I do believe this is our answer.

Before we get to the Dominican Summer League, let's take a brief pause and acknowledge Brewers 2025 draft pick - SS Brady Ebel - nearly took the Guardians' RHP Triston McKenzie out of the ballpark in the ACL Bridge League. McKenzie is a 28-year-old with 435 IP over his Minor League career. He has struck out 512 batters over that span. Ebel is just turned 18 (July 25th) and straight out of high school giving us a poem of a swing that looks like this:

Let's keep dreaming on the Bitonti, Adamczewski, Ebel lefty mash parade. I'm here for it.

Final: DSL Cleveland Goryl 12, DSL Brewers Blue 4 
Box Score/Game Log

Outhit 9-to-2, the Brewers Blue also trailed 12-0 headed to the ninth inning. They plated four, obviously. They can thank their eight walks for their 1-for-6 with RISP. There is not a clean ledger on the pitching side. Actually, 17-year-old LHP Santiago Martinez, in just his second appearance since his return from the early June IL, didn't make it out of the first inning. He didn't record a single out in his ugly 0.0 IP, 5 BB, 1 WP, 4 ER outing. That's going to be a tough one to bounce back from in what has been a lost season for the most part. If we're going to pick a winner in this blow out, and you can bet I will, it's 20-year-old RHP Lenin Mendez. We salute his 3 1/3 IP of 3 H, 2 BB, 4 K, 1 ER work. RF Carlos Done, batting lead-off, grabbed a 1-for-4, 1 BB, 1 K day atop the batting order. 3B Jhoanjel Saez grabbed the lone XBH in his 1-for-3, 1 R, 1 RBI, 1 BB, 1 2B, 1 SB day at the dish. Impressive work overall. With the loss, the DSL Brewers Blue fell to 26-24 overall.

Final: DSL Dodgers Mega 6, DSL Brewers Gold 0 - Final/7-Innings
Box Score/Game Log

Only outhit a measley 4-to-2, the Brewers pitching staff walked seven batters and the Brewers Gold defense also suffered two throwing errors. In a low-hitting affair those were the difference. 3B Cristian Montilla collected both Brewers Gold pokes during his 2-for-2, 1 BB, 1 3B day at the dish. Lead-off CF Kenny Fenelon also managed an 0-for-1, 2 BB, 1 K, 1 HBP day atop the batting order. All in all despite earning eight walks themselves, because of the sleepy bats the Brewers Gold managed an 0-for-9 mark with RISP. Ouch. Though no Brewers Gold hurler managed an unblemished line, once again RHP Raymond Sarmiento sticks out with his 5.0 IP of 2 H, 2 BB, 5 K, 3 ER work. With the loss, the DSL Brewers Gold fell to 23-28 overall.

Unfortunately, though there was the possibility of a playoff appearance for both DSL Brewers squads just two some weeks ago that possibility has vanished over the past week. 

Organizational Scoreboard including starting pitcher info, game times, MiLB TV links, and box scores
MiLB Audio Links
Current Milwaukee Brewers Organization Batting Stats and Depth
Current Milwaukee Brewers Organization Pitching Stats and Depth

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!