These Pitchers Could Rocket Up The Minor-League Ladder

The fact is, the Brewers could see multiple pitchers rocket up the minor-league ladder, some of whom dominated while being young for their league. These six pitchers posted some superb seasons and could be very exciting to watch in 2024.

Logan Henderson (Low-A Carolina)
4-3, 2.75 ERA, 0.97 WHIP, 50 hits, 26 walks, 106 strikeouts over 78 2/3 innings pitched in 18 games (18 starts)
Henderson came back after missing most of 2022 with elbow surgery and punched out a lot of hitters. He primarily deployed a fastball-changeup combination, with a slurve as his third pitch. Henderson is practically unhittable, and his control was solid. The best news: He built himself up to pitch at least five innings in each of his last eight starts, with a 2.66 ERA, slightly lower than his season-long total of 2.75. The big question will be whether he can show the durability to be a starter. If not, he has a bright future as a top-end reliever.

Patricio Aquino (Carolina)
5-3, 2.75 ERA, 1.26 WHIP, 80 hits, 31 walks, 86 strikeouts over 88 1/3 innings pitched in 21 games (19 starts)
He didn’t quite have the hype of Henderson or Jacob Misiorowski, but Aquino emerged as a solid prospect in 2023. His fastball-slider combination has racked up a lot of strikeouts, but the big news was a drastic cut in his walk rate from rookie ball. He also reduced his home run rate. His changeup is a bit behind the other two pitches, but Freddy Peralta was quite solid early on with his limited arsenal.

Melvin Hernandez (Rookie DSL Brewers 2)
2-2, 2.06 ERA, 1.17 WHIP, 32 hits, 9 walks, 30 strikeouts over 35 innings pitched in 10 games (7 starts)
Hernandez hasn’t made either the MLB Pipeline Top 30 or the Brewer Fanatic Top 20. However, his 2023 performance was solid by any measurement, and he did that in what was an age-16 season as one of the youngest in the DSL. Hernandez displayed excellent command and control, allowing just one home run and nine walks over the short season. Currently standing at 5’11” and listed at a positively bantam 139 pounds, he could mature a bit physically and be very good, very quickly.

Enniel Cortez (DSL Brewers 1)
4-1, 1.58 ERA, 0.88 WHIP, 35 hits, 5 walks, 49 strikeouts over 45 2/3 innings pitched in 11 games (8 starts)
Cortez simply dominated at the bottom rung of pro baseball, and still didn’t crack either the MLB Pipeline Top 30 or the Brewer Fanatic Top 20. He was about two months older than Hernandez, but delivered stunning results, allowing just five walks and one go-fer ball. Cortez simply was unhittable, and was arguably the DSL Brewers' ace. He earned Brewer Fanatic’s Short Season Pitcher of the Year award for 2023. At 17, he can still see some physical development, and that could make things very exciting.

Eric Prado (DSL Brewers 1)
2-1, 1.54 ERA, 0.93 WHIP, 24 hits, 14 walks, 37 strikeouts over 41 innings pitched in 11 games (7 starts)
Prado was less hittable than Cortez and Hernandez in 2023, although he did issue as many free passes as those two hurlers combined. Like those two, he didn’t make either of the aforementioned prospect lists, but he still posted a 0.93 WHIP and a 1.54 ERA, which is quite spectacular no matter how one looks at it. In fact, in some ways, he could argue that he, and not Cortez, was the ace of the DSL Brewers 1 squad. He didn’t rack up the punchouts, but he certainly didn’t get hit very much, either.

Anthony Flores (DSL Brewers 1)
1-3, 3.22 ERA, 1.10 WHIP, 33 hits, 16 walks, 57 strikeouts in 44 2/3 innings pitched in 11 games (11 starts)
Flores was a clear third for the DSL Brewers 1 squad starters, but there's no shame in coming in Show in a race with these particular horses. He took major steps forward across all the metrics, minus allowing his first go-fer ball as a pro. Unlike the other DSL pitchers, Flores was a starter the entire season, and even pitched a complete game, so he’s worked up to regular rotation status. Still, though, he was snubbed by bot MLB's and our own prospect lists. Until they have Stateside success, young hurlers are often overlooked this way.

Which of these pitchers do you think could duplicate Misiorowski’s rapid rise through the system? Could some of them get even better than they already are?

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!