Harold Hutchison

Ernesto Martinez has been around for a while. He first played in the Brewers system in 2018 – the same year Christian Yelich led the Brewers to Game 7 of the National League Championship Series. His proximity to MLB and a very productive month of April have made Martinez Brewer Fanatic’s April 2025 Minor League Hitter of the Month. Martinez hit the MLB Pipeline Top 30 prospects list in April at the age of 26, but the flashes of potential have been there from his first pro season. They’ve come together in Triple-A Nashville, where Martinez has benefited from getting the bulk of playing time at the cold corner due to Tyler Black suffering a hamate injury. The numbers, in one sense, speak for themselves: After the games of May 2, Martinez has posted a .303/.390/.485 slash line while at Music City, adding a double, a triple, and three home runs over 66 at-bats in 18 games. For a Brewers team struggling to generate consistent offense – having lost by 24-4 over the last three games – Martinez could be an in-house option for the team searching for an impact bat to help the lineup. Past profiles on Brewer Fanatic noted the exit velocity Martinez is posting – comparable to figures posted by Giancarlo Stanton, Shohei Ohtani, and Aaron Judge. Given the monster years left-handed power hitters have had playing half the time in American Family Field, Martinez looks to be well-suited for the Brewers. He’s not just provided offense – Martinez has been an outstanding defender at first base, something the Brewers have emphasized in recent years. Martinez is a big target (6’6” tall, 254 pounds per MLB Pipeline), who has been able to do the splits to make some of the plays at first base. His initial offensive profile seemed a lot like that of Eric Thames, a legitimate three-true outcome threat who played first base and corner outfield spots for the Brewers from 2017-2019. While his size and power have been impressive, Martinez’s offensive profile also includes being a threat on the base paths. Since start of the 2021 minor-league baseball season, Martinez has 75 steals and has been caught only 19 times. His defensive profile has also expanded. In 2021, he not only mashed an .862 OPS, he stole 30 bases in 34 attempts over 79 games, and saw some limited action in center field. During his 2024 breakout in Double-A Biloxi, he again manned center field. Given the proximity to MLB, and the Brewers’ need for some serious offensive help, Ernesto Martinez is the April 2025 Minor League Hitter of the Month. Honorable Mentions Other major contributors at the plate in April down on the farm: Cooper Pratt posted a .750 OPS as he excelled defensively at Double-A Biloxi at the age of 20; Josh Adamczewski posted a .986 OPS as part of a dominating Carolina Mudcats team; Jesus Made made the leap to full-season Single-A without initial issue with a .948 OPS; View full article

Cooper PrattErnesto MartinezJesus MadeCraig YohoJacob MisiorowskiTyler BlackJeferson QueroChad PatrickLuis PenaBraylon PayneJadher AreinamoLogan HendersonMike BoeveRobert GasserCarlos F RodriguezLuke AdamsEric BitontiLuis LaraJosh AdamczewskiCaleb Durbin

Cooper PrattErnesto MartinezJesus MadeCraig YohoJacob MisiorowskiTyler BlackJeferson QueroChad PatrickLuis PenaBraylon PayneJadher AreinamoLogan HendersonMike BoeveRobert GasserCarlos F RodriguezLuke AdamsEric BitontiLuis LaraJosh AdamczewskiCaleb Durbin

A 2-5 start to their end-of-April road trip has the Brewers under .500 and looking up at two teams in the NL Central. This isn't the starts fan were hoping for. Image courtesy of © Benny Sieu-USA TODAY Sports It's easy to attribute the Brewers' relatively slow start to the team's struggles on the road. Through the first 29 games of the season, the Crew are 9-4 at home against just 5-11 on the road. The whole team seems to just play better in the confines of American Family Field. Before the season, we covered best- and worst-case scenarios for each position on the Brewers. How are each of those cases faring through the first month of the season? Catcher: So Far, So Good At this point, the Brewers can’t complain too much. William Contreras is holding down the bulk of the starts and Eric Haase is doing more than okay as a backup. The only bad news is Jeferson Quero’s hamstring troubles, which have complicated his return from a lost 2024, and Darrien Miller’s slump in Biloxi. First Base: Better Than Hoped For Rhys Hoskins is posting a 137 OPS+ and providing a power bat to the lineup, partially making up for the loss of Willy Adams. This could be good if the Crew wants to flip him at the deadline. The Crew has also seen Ernesto Martinez perform very well at Triple-A Nashville. It's worth keeping an eye on Jake Bauer’s presence on the 26-man roster. Bauers is hitting well so far, but Tyler Black is nearing the end of the initial timeline given on his hamate injury. Second Base: Close To Best-Case Brice Turang is holding his own in the leadoff slot and hitting like he did in the first half of 2024. It’s an open question if he can keep it up, but to date, he is leading the league in hits. Peculiarly, he's had two errors already, though that probably isn't much to worry about for the reigning Gold Glover. Third Base: At Worst-Case Oliver Dunn and Vinny Capra have posted sub-.500 OPS totals at the hot corner for the Crew — Caleb Durbin’s .670 OPS looks Ruthian in comparison. The good news is Durbin has stuck out exactly once through his first 32 plate appearances. The bad news is his walk total is the same. The team may need to think about some options, but trading prospects for a veteran might be a bad way to go. Could it be a desperate enough situation for Tyler Black to man the hot corner when he is healthy? Shortstop: Teetering Close To Worst-Case Brewers fans hoped Joey Ortiz would take his offense up a level, or at least keep up his 2024 pace. Instead, his batting average is looking up at the Uecker line, his defense has dropped a notch, and he has one extra-base hit (a double). The only good news is he's working a very impressive walk rate. Left Field: Middle Case A lot has been made of Jackson Chourio struggling at the plate so far in 2025. The “struggling” phenom still is tied for the team lead in homers (five), second in RBIs (20 to Christian Yelich’s 21), has spanked another ten extra-base hits, and has a 108 OPS+. When a guy’s struggles still result in above-average offense, that says a lot of good things about him. Center Field: Heading For Worst Case? First, Blake Perkins injured his shin. Now, Garrett Mitchell was off to a cold start and left the April 25 game against the Cardinals with a left oblique issue, subseuqently resulting his placement on the 10-day IL. It's not that Sal Frelick or Jackson Chourio are horrible backup options, but the chain reaction of injuries could force the Brewers into sub-optimal choices for the corner outfield spots. Right Field: Best Case… But Trending Down Sal Frelick is arguably one of the hotter hitters on the Crew. The injury to Garrett Mitchell, combined with the move of Blake Perkins to the 60-day injured list, now has the Brewers on their third-string center fielder. Will it be Frelick, or is it Chourio? Designated Hitter: Almost The Best Case Christian Yelich is hitting close to his 2024 form. He’s also held down the bulk of the starts at the position. The bad news is that Yelich may have to see more time in the field due to the center field injury situation. Starting Rotation: Close To Best-Case Now, Worst-Case Scenario For The Future Yes, the Brewers are getting excellent performance from Chad Patrick, Jose Quintana, Freddy Peralta, and many of their starting pitchers. And while Quinn Priester is also performing well, the trade for him is exactly what the Brewers needed to avoid — they lost one top prospect and they lost their Competitive Balance A pick to get Priester. This is because of injuries to Tobias Myers, Aaron Civale, and Nestor Cortes. Short-term, the team’s doing fine, but the injuries will likely cost the team down the road, both in terms of the Priester trade and the probable loss of “conditional” picks in the 2026 MLB draft. Bullpen: Closer To Best-Case Than Worst-Case The Brewers' bullpen has, for the most part, locked down leads when the team has been able to generate them. The big questions center around how the bullpen will shake out with the return of other pitchers (Brandon Woodruff, Civale, and Cortes), but for the most part, the Brewers have a lot of good options, even with Joel Payamps and Bryan Hudson struggling. Overview The 2025 Brewers have been inconsistent, to put it mildly. The team’s looking very solid in most places, with the biggest problem being the left side of their infield and their top two center fielders being injured. Worse, the rash of injuries in the starting rotation has a potential long-term cost of up to four prospects for the Brewers, a serious hit for a team in one of MLB’s smallest markets. View full article

When it comes to Brewers who are Hall of Famers, the names Paul Molitor and Robin Yount immediately come to mind, with seven other players who wore the blue and gold during their careers also achieving immortality in Cooperstown. Image courtesy of Benny Sieu/Milwaukee Journal Sentinel Those nine players, along with two broadcasters (Bob Uecker and Pat Hughes) and executive Larry Whiteside from the team’s early days in Milwaukee comprise the team's representatives in the National Baseball Hall of Fame. However, there are four more Brewers who can call themselves Hall-of-Famers—albeit not in Cooperstown. Instead, they are in the Australian Baseball Hall of Fame, including two Brewers who had significant impact through the team’s nadir following the retirement of Robin Yount and the departure of Paul Molitor via free agency, and one whose legacy arguably includes the CC Sabathia trade. Let’s take a look at these four Brewers. C/1B/OF/DH Dave Nilsson (1992-1999) Nilsson came up as a catcher in 1992 and handled that position on and off during his eight seasons with the Brewers. He also played first base, both corner outfield spots, and designated hitter, often to get his potent left-handed bat in the lineup. In 1999, he secured an All-Star Game nod, the first for an Australian, as he was the team’s primary catcher that season, en route to the best year of his career. He went to NPB in 2000 in order to be eligible to represent Australia in the Olympics, and did not return to the US until a brief stint in the Brave’s Triple-A affiliate in Richmond in 2004, the year Australia’s baseball team earned a silver medal in the Olympics. Nilsson was part of the Australian Baseball Hall of Fame’s inaugural class in 2005, inducted alongside his brother, Bob. Nilsson currently manages the Brisbane Bandits, where the Brewers have sent some minor-league prospects in recent years, and Australia’s national team. LHP Graeme Lloyd (1993-1996) Like Nilsson, Lloyd was part of the inaugural class of the Australian Baseball Hall of Fame. His legacy for the Brewers, though, extended beyond not just his departure via an August 1996 trade with the Yankees, but even beyond his retirement from MLB in 2003. The reason for this may sound like an episode of James Burke’s Connections, but it shows how a player can impact a team for years beyond a departure. Lloyd was a left-handed reliever during his time in Milwaukee, often serving as a bridge to closer Mike Fetters during that window. He arrived after a trade between the Brewers and the Phillies, who took him in the Rule 5 draft. The return for including Lloyd in the 1996 trade with the Yankees included reliever Bob Wickman—and the legacy only continued from there. In 2000, Wickman was part of the package that netted the Brewers first baseman Richie Sexson. After Lloyd’s final MLB season in 2003, Sexson was dealt to the Diamondbacks for a package that included starter Chris Capuano, infielder Craig Counsell (later arguably the best manager in Brewers’ history), and first baseman Lyle Overbay. Overbay was later traded to the Blue Jays for starter Dave Bush, who would secure a win in the 2008 National League Wild Card series against the Phillies. Lloyd’s legacy, in essence, included Milwaukee breaking a lengthy playoff drought and securing the current era of competitiveness down the line. UT Trent Durrington (2004-2005) Durrington had two cups of coffee with the Crew, one in 2004, the other in 2005. His calling cards during his professional career were versatility (during his pro career, he played all nine positions on the field between MLB and the minors) and speed (377 career stolen bases in the minors, 14 more in the majors). With the Brewers, Durrington mostly served as a pinch-hitter and pinch-runner off the bench, stealing nine bases and scoring 16 runs. Notably, he hit three triples in just 82 at-bats at the major-league level in 2004. During the 2004 season, he made an appearance on the mound with the Brewers, and retired the only hitter he faced on one pitch. He is the only player to have just one pitch in MLB, according to Stathead. Durrington did not have eye-popping numbers for the Brewers, but he was a contributor to the 2004 and 2005 Brewers teams, the latter of which posted a .500 winning percentage, the team’s first non-losing season since 1992. Durrington was inducted into the Australian Baseball Hall of Fame in 2015. RHP Grant Balfour (2007) Balfour had a brief tenure with the Brewers in 2007, making a comeback after missing the 2005 season with an injury and spending 2006 in the Reds’ system. In fact, his numbers with the Brewers that year were awful (0-2 record, 20.25 ERA). However, as the 2007 season’s trade deadline neared, the Crew flipped Balfour to the Tampa Bay Devil Rays for right-handed pitcher Seth McClung, who became a valuable swingman on the 2008 club that secured the National League Wild Card berth after the trade for CC Sabathia, giving Balfour a legacy similar to that of Lloyd, albeit in a more immediate sense. Balfour blossomed into a valuable late-inning reliever with the Rays, then went to Oakland, where he became a solid closer for the Athletics before closing out his MLB career with two more seasons in Tampa. Balfour was inducted alongside Trent Durrington into the Australian Baseball Hall of Fame in 2015. View full article

Think back through your Brewers fandom. Have you ever wondered if you could do better than Matt Arnold and Pat Murphy? How about past Brewers GMs and managers? Could you get the 2018 Brewers to the World Series? Could good defeat evil in the 1982 World Series? Could you avoid the Brewers' 2002 nadir? You have a chance to find out with Baseball Mogul 2025. We reviewed it in 2023, but this year, it’s added some new features, while retaining the features that allow you to try and do better than the team’s General Manager or President of Baseball Operations or the on-field manager. As is the case with the previous version we reveiwed, you not only get to work with the major-league roster, but you also get to handle developing prospects. New Features The 2025 edition comes with some new features – perhaps the most important for those who want to see if they can do better than Craig Counsell or Murphy (or any other Brewers manager over the years) is the introduction of in-game injuries, a first for the franchise. Previously, injuries were only revealed outside games. But as Brewers fan know (Christian Yelich’s kneecap in 2019, Ben Sheet’s lat in 2008), injuries can also happen during games as well. While the reviewer has yet to have one crop up in a game, that factor has to be taken into account when assembling your 26-man roster. There are also tweaks to the play-by-play feature – you can now pause between plays in a simulated computer game. You also have the option to use the enter key as opposed to a mouse when in Manager or Player mode. Also, you not only now see what pitches that a hurler might have, you get to see how often they use them. A Wealth Of Possibilities In Baseball Mogul, you don’t just get to be GM or manager – you can also be the owner or even MLB commissioner. As owner, you could modify your team’s park. For instance, let’s say you decide to replace the natural grass in American Family Field with artificial turf – you can do that, giving the Brewers’ home park a nice upgrade, and make it friendlier for the gap-power of Sal Frelick, Brice Turang, and other players on the 2024-2025 Brewers. Want to help your ground-ball pitchers? You can have the grass grow longer to reduce the hits. Or, you can play commissioner and alter the roster rules, including when draft picks can be traded, the size of the rosters (maybe you want to see how teams do with a 28-man roster in the regular season, with a 32-man expanded roster – or bring back a 40-man expanded roster to September). Of course, as GM or manager, you can also make decisions. You can see what happens if you don’t move Ryan Braun from third base after 2007. Or maybe, you decide to see what sort of extension you can sign Willy Adames to prior to the start of the 2024 season. Maybe you decide to make a trade for that third baseman – who are you willing to give up? You get to make the same type of calls Matt Arnold, David Stearns, Doug Melvin, Harry Dalton, and other famous GMs have mage over the years. The Good Points As was the case in the 2023 edition, the 2025 edition of Baseball Mogul has a superb ratings system that generally reflects performance, including the ability to replay a given season based on performance. It also allows one to adjust ratings for players and create new ones. Players also will be able to manage the minor-league system– figure out who to promote, draft, and, if necessary, trade. A player of this game also gets a chance to negotiate extensions or contracts, and even handle arbitration. One also gets to face many of the same choices Pat Murphy faces in the dugout. How do you manage your bullpen over the course of a season? What about giving your players a day off at various points? The game makes you address those questions. The Stuff That Could Be Better The Computer GMs of the other 29 teams will make trades with each other, and these deals sometimes aren’t necessarily logical. So, don’t be surprised if a player you know is on one team is dealt. Roster management is a lot more simplified than in reality. You don’t have to deal with waiver claims, the Rule 5 draft, or some of the more esoteric manipulations of the 40-man roster. In fact, you can stash prospects for as long as you want. It’s not quite accurate, although there appears to be some of the infrastructure needed to create functionality for the 40-man roster management, along with suspensions for off-field conduct or on-field stuff (ejections would be nice to see implemented, say for excessive plunking of hitters or when a bench-clearing brawl occurs). In addition, the minor-league rosters are not complete, the affiliates are outdated, and players on current MLB rosters (like Connor Thomas for the Brewers) aren’t featured as of version 28.05. Some blue-chip prospects (like Jacob Misiorowski, Craig Yoho, Jeferson Quero, Cooper Pratt, and Tyler Black) seem to be low-balled in the ratings. Some of the managerial decisions are pretty simplified as well. There is no “shifting” the defense. Players can try to hit the ball or handle the pitching–but that can be time-consuming. The game also could be better at handling players who play 25-30 games at multiple positions in the course of a season. All too often, they end up sitting on the bench, or they keep another good player on the bench. There still are some glitches, particularly when it comes to implementing MLB’s “runner on second” extra-inning rules. Overview Brewers fans will find Baseball Mogul to be an excellent way to spend the months where there is no baseball as a fun pastime, but it can even entertain during the season. While its graphics may not be killer, and it looks pretty dry, it can run on just about any Windows PC, and when it comes to the strategy that goes into a game, series, season, or an entire dynasty, this game is the best choice out there. Baseball Mogul 2025 is available from SportsMogul.com. View full article

The Brewers have a pair of "must-sweep" series coming up, if you ask me.

Brewers relievers have been reliably able to lock down leads going back decades, even on some of the teams that struggled the most. Will that remain true for 2025? The Roster Situation In recent years, the Brewers have seen some turnover at closer. Since the start of 2022, they had Josh Hader (traded to the Padres), Devin Williams (eventually dealt to the Yankees), Abner Uribe (struggled in 2024, so much that he never truly established himself in the role), and Trevor Megill (the current incumbent). Yet, this team could be almost as solid as ever in the pen. Megill and Uribe look to hold down the late innings for the Brewers in 2025, while Bryan Hudson and Jared Koenig are the team’s top lefties. Elvis Peguero and Joel Payamps have been solid since coming over via trade before the 2023 season. Rule 5 pick Connor Thomas, rescued from the focus of evil in the National League Central, is likely to serve as a long-relief option. The team has Nick Mears on the injured list as another option. While the hope is for them to be starters when they return from the injured list, Aaron Ashby and DL Hall have been dominant as multi-inning options in the bullpen. Elvin Rodriguez and Tyler Alexander are also capable of getting more than three outs in a game. In the minors, the Brewers have Grant Wolfram and (when they get healthy enough to shuttle him back to Nashville) Grant Anderson as options, while Craig Yoho is the team’s closer of the future. The Best-Case Scenario: The Brewers Actively Market Payamps and Peguero in May Why would the Brewers having what amounts to a fire sale of relievers be good news? Several reasons, not all of them mutually exclusive: Craig Yoho forces his way into the MLB bullpen (and it could be argued he should have been on the Opening Day roster); Milwaukee’s injured pitchers come back soon and in top form; The Brewers could elect for Logan Henderson and Jacob Misiorowski to fill the roles that Corbin Burnes and Brandon Woodruff filled in the 2018 season. Short version: Payamps and Peguero are solid options as middle relief for the Brewers, but the Brewers have a lot of higher-ceiling relief options that could fuel not just a late-season run to make the playoffs, but to help the team get past the first round. The best case is for the team to be able to flip Payamps and Peguero (and possibly others) to help recharge the farm system – not only providing short-term bullpen help, but setting the team up for future success as well. Payamps and Peguero may be middle relief in Milwaukee, but they could be closers or set-up men for about a dozen MLB teams. After all, they will have to make space for Yoho and Misiorowski somehow… why not get a decent trade return in the process? The Worst-Case Scenario: The Brewers Are Trading For Relief Help In July Like the starting rotation, the Brewers have a lot of internal options for the bullpen. So they should not need to be looking to external options barring an insanely good offer. If they are, then the Brewers have had a rash of injuries and/or ineffectiveness at the MLB level, and pitchers like Yoho and Misiorowski are not available or have seriously regressed. If this is the case, then the Brewers will have real problems in 2026 and beyond, because their pitching development will have suffered a serious hiccup. While the team could bank on a return to form by prospects, it is far more likely in this case, that the Crew would have to consider tanking for a year or two to rebuild. It should be noted that this would be an extremely worst-case scenario. If 2025 is going the way that Brewers fans hope it will, the team is going to be transitioning to a new generation of relievers. Overview The Brewers’ success at developing pitching has not just helped their starting rotation. It’s also helped the bullpen by providing a landing spot for a surfeit of pitching talent. It says much that pitchers of the quality level of Jared Koenig, Elvis Peguero, and Joel Payamps are in middle-relief roles for the Brewers, and that they have a regular pipeline of new bullpen assets between the minor leagues and low-profile free agency signings. It’s possible for the bullpen to go wrong for the Brewers in 2025, but that possibility is extremely remote. View full article

Although you've sort of already seen one of these... right? Image courtesy of © Dave Kallmann / Milwaukee Journal Sentinel / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images The Roster Situation When the players reported to Maryvale in February. the Brewers had Freddy Peralta, Aaron Civale, Nestor Cortes, Tobias Myers, DL Hall, Aaron Ashby, and Brandon Woodruff as veteran major-league starters, with Carlos Rodriguez, Robert Gasser, Logan Henderson, and Chad Patrick as top prospects on the 40-man roster, along with Jacob Misiorowski as their most prominent non-roster invitee to spring training. In early March, they added Jose Quintana, an impressive reinforcement to that group. The veteran corps is pretty deep, while the prospect group also looks very promising—if you can look beyond this particular moment. The Brewers have a lot of good options, and this year, they need them, as Gasser, Myers, Hall, Ashby, and Woodruff all opened the season on the injured list, only to be joined by Civale after one start. Also on the active roster are options like Tyler Alexander, Connor Thomas, and Elvin Rodriguez, who could be emergency options in the rotation. Jared Koenig served as an “opener” for the Brewers in 2024 on several occasions, as well, but that's not truly the same thing. The Best-Case Scenario: The Rotation Solidifies Around The Veterans For 2025, the Brewers’ best-case scenario sees the rotation solidify around Peralta, Woodruff, Civale, Cortes, and Myers by the middle of May, with Hall and Ashby settling in as multi-inning relief options. If that happens, it buys time for the young prospects to recover from injury or to pick up one more year of seasoning at Triple-A Nashville. This, of course, is dependent on how the prospects fare, as well. Henderson and Misiorowski are blue-chip prospects, Gasser performed well in a brief stint last year, before he needed Tommy John surgery, and Patrick and Rodriguez look to be Bryse Wilson types. No one wanted to see them start the first two home games of the team's schedule, but hopefully, the team ends up feeling pressure to recall them at some point this summer, because their more experienced and accomplished teammates have reclaimed their spots but both are pitching well in Nashville. One note about the prospects (and even some of the veterans) who could contribute: The Brewers got a lot of them via unheralded ways: Woodruff was an 11th-round draft pick. Myers was a minor-league free agent. Peralta was one of three rookie-level pitchers acquired in the Adam Lind trade. Carlos Rodriguez was a 6th-round draft pick. This is a team that can develop competent starters. The Worst-Case Scenario: The Brewers End Up Trading for a Starting Pitcher Given all this depth, one thing that the Brewers should not be looking to acquire this summer is a starting pitcher, unless they are approached with an insane deal. It's still possible they'll need to pick up someone just to patch their holes this month, but the Brewers entering the trade market for a starter this summer could only be the result of some very bad news. If the Brewers are looking to trade for starting pitching, then their veterans have been injured or ineffective and the prospects have regressed very badly—or are also on the injured list. This would point to not just a disastrous 2025, but rough times in 2026 and even 2027. This is not to say that there are no situations where grabbing an upgrade in the rotation would be advisable late in the season, but as a general rule, if the Brewers are seeking an external candidate in 2025 to help the rotation, then the team is in a world of hurt. That's the world they're in right now, though, so we don't exactly have to wear out our imaginations to envision it happening again in June or July. Overview The Brewers have excelled at developing starting pitchers in the minor leagues (Peralta, Woodruff, Ashby), and also have been very good at finding hidden gems that other teams have allowed to walk (Myers) or acquiring possible options at a very cheap price. Sometimes, they also level-up a veteran (see former Brewer Colin Rea). The wealth of internal options the Brewers have will, in all likelihood, serve them well in 2025. Recent seasons have shown that the injury bug can still plague this team, and it may very well come down to how well the Brewers can leverage their bounty of internal options. View full article

Per Baseball Reference's "Yearly Starters" page, Bauers was at DH for 17 games in 2024.

The Brewers rotated through a lot of players at designated hitter in 2024. They'll do so again this year. Will it be a similar cast spending time there? Image courtesy of © Mark J. Rebilas-Imagn Images The Roster Situation Christian Yelich appears lined up to take most of the at-bats at designated hitter in 2025, primarily due to the presence of Jackson Chourio, Garrett Mitchell, and Sal Frelick as the main starters in the outfield, with Blake Perkins as the fourth outfielder when he returns from injury. Yelich rotated with Gary Sánchez, Rhys Hoskins, and William Contreras (among others) at designated hitter in 2024. This year, he may be the primary option, which will help him after he lost a large chunk of 2024 to back issues. When he was healthy, Yelich was at his best form since 2019, but he only played 79 games. Hoskins and Contreras will each see time at DH, too, and Tyler Black could yet win a place in that mix later in the season. Of course, it's likely that other players (like Frelick or Brice Turang) could get a game or two at DH to give them a break (as was the case in 2023 and 2024), but much of their value is in their defense, so the team will lean as heavily as health allows on Yelich. The Best-Case Scenario: Christian Yelich Gets 150 Starts At DH Let’s put it this way: Yelich may prefer to be out in the field, but the best-case scenario for the Brewers is to get 150 or more starts from Yelich at designated hitter. This would mean two things: Yelich is healthy and hitting at a similar clip to 2024, if not better. A healthy Yelich playing twice as many games as he played in 2024 would be a huge assist for the 2025 Brewers in replacing some of the production lost when Willy Adames went to San Francisco. The Brewers have significant stability across the lineup. In the outfield, Chourio, Mitchell, Frelick, Perkins, and maybe Black would be getting the playing time at the three spots in various combinations, producing offensively and helping the run prevention work out. Yelich will only be close to a full-time DH if he's not needed in the outfield, which would mean good health from Mitchell and others. This would also mean more rest (or maybe some games at first base) for William Contreras, keeping him fresher. The Worst-Case Scenario: DH Is A Revolving Door For Yet Another Season In 2024, 17 different players appeared as the DH for Milwaukee. Six of them were at the position for 10 games or more. It was, to put it nicely, the sign of a somewhat unstable lineup, mostly due to injuries suffered by players like Yelich, Mitchell, Sánchez, Hoskins, and Oliver Dunn, as well as the Brewers’ refusal to give Tyler Black an extended look in MLB after Yelich was lost for the season. If designated hitter again becomes a revolving door, it means that Yelich hasn’t held it down, especially if one of two scenarios has emerged: Either Yelich’s injury woes have not been overcome (which would be a devastating blow to the Brewers’ offense), or Yelich is seeing time in the outfield because of injuries in that position group (perhaps just as bad, depending on who is out). Historically, the Brewers have never had a player lock down the DH position. The player listed most often as the primary DH at Baseball Reference is Dick Davis, who totaled -1.5 Wins Above Replacement. If 2025 is like many other Brewers seasons where they have a revolving door, the Brewers could have some real trouble. Overview Designated hitter could be the biggest “tell” about whether 2025 has gone well for Milwaukee. If Yelich is serving as the DH most days, it means the team’s managed to put together a superb lineup. There are other scenarios where the team could do well without Yelich handling most of the DH duties, but they usually will revolve around prospects like Jeferson Quero, Ernesto Martinez, or Tyler Black forcing their way to Milwaukee. If the Brewers are rotating players broadly and equally, then the likely reason is that things have gone very badly downhill. Some of these situations may not be as bad as others, but it is hard to imagine a positive scenario if Jake Bauers is playing DH on a semi-regular basis. View full article

Last year, the team enjoyed sparkling defense, but at a bat-first position, can the Crew find more well-rounded production in 2025? Image courtesy of © Mark J. Rebilas-Imagn Images The Roster Situation Sal Frelick was the Crew’s primary right fielder in 2024, with Jackson Chourio and Garrett Mitchell also seeing significant playing time in that spot. In essence, these three young outfielders are almost interchangeable. Frelick, of course, won a Gold Glove, and he also provided competent offense and excellent baserunning. Fringe roster options Brewer Hicklen, Isaac Collins and Jake Bauers will provide emergency depth at this spot. Especially encouraging campaigns by minor-league signee Jimmy Herron or prospects Tyler Black or Luis Lara could see them get a sliver of playing time, but several things have to go very wrong for Frelick, Chourio and Mitchell not to combine to cover most of the innings in right this season. The Best-Case Scenario: Frelick Or Chourio Get The Bulk Of Starts The Brewers have two best-case scenarios in right field, each centered around Frelick and Chourio. Frelick has a combination of bat-to-ball skills, baserunning acumen, and defense that makes him a very valuable player. After losing weight and wearing down in 2024, he came to spring training in much better shape. Chourio’s a potential franchise player, blessed with a dreamy blend of power and speed. If he’s getting a lot of starts in right field, that would make Frelick the Crew’s fourth outfielder, meaning some top prospect's bat has forced its way into the lineup, leading to lots of playing time for Christian Yelich in left, rather than at DH. Any scenario wherein Yelich, Frelick, Chourio, Mitchell and Blake Perkins largely share just three spots in the lineup is a sign of good things for the Milwaukee Brewers, since it would mean they have a lot of very good options, leading to a fun debate for fans to have. The Worst-Case Scenario: Jake Bauers Sees Significant Time In Right Field Was Bauers horrible in 2024? Not necessarily. He was hot for a bit, then slumped, but still has good OBP skills and defense. The big issue is that his batting average for 2024 was below the Uecker line. As is the case with left field and center field, the worst-case scenario means that while the Brewers would likely have a competent player in the position, they would have gone far down their depth chart due to injuries and/or ineffectiveness, a sign that the 2025 season will be a disappointing one. If Bauers is getting his at-bats with the Triple-A Nashville Sounds, the Brewers will be much more likely to be gunning for a deep playoff run, instead of having to pray the draft lottery goes their way. Overview There are a number of ways for right field to go well for the Brewers in 2025, but there are real risks. Mitchell and Yelich have major injury histories to consider. Perkins is hurt right now. If that problem piles up on them, the team could end up stretched thin all the way around from left field to right. Still, it can go very right. If Luis Lara gets red hot, he could force his way to the majors in 2025. In that case, perhaps Mitchell would slide over. A fully healthy Jeferson Quero could become a key role player in the second half, which would mean him or William Contreras taking up the DH spot more often and the aforementioned chain reaction of abundance for the outfield. Right is probably the outfield position where things are most likely to go wrong for the team this year, but even there, the depth is solid and intriguing. View full article

Darrien Miller's shown some excellent OBP skills in a small sample size this spring. Can't see how he hasn't impressed the coaches/front office.

The Brewers have a lot of choices in center field as 2025 approaches. But which of them would be best for the team? Image courtesy of © Jovanny Hernandez / Milwaukee Journal Sentinel / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images The Roster Situation Garrett Mitchell, Sal Frelick, and Blake Perkins saw action for the Brewers in center field in 2024, with Perkins, a Gold Glove finalist, as the primary center fielder. Jackson Chourio and Christian Yelich also have professional experience in that spot, as have Brewer Hicklen and Tyler Black. Among the non-roster invitees, Luis Lara and Manuel Margot also have experience in center field, with Lara being a top prospect. First baseman Ernesto Martinez has handled this position capably in brief minor-league stints. The Best Case Scenario – Garrett Mitchell has 130 starts in center field Mitchell is perhaps the Brewers’ most dynamic offensive threat in center field. He posted 2.0 WAR in 69 games, per Baseball-Reference. In his 116 total games, he’s racked up 3.6 WAR, with a 121 OPS+. A healthy Mitchell is easily an All-Star caliber player – think a left-handed Carlos Gomez at his 2013-2014 peak. He provides defense, speed, power, and on-base skills. He also reduced his strikeout percentage from nearly 50% to 36%. He has made adjustments to MLB pitching and is an easy 30-30 threat. Not that Frelick and Perkins are horrible choices, either. The former is a Gold Glover who brings speed and some good on-base skills and would be a viable starter and leadoff hitter for at least two-thirds of MLB teams. Perkins brings defense, some OBP skills, and speed. He can stretch a lineup at worst and can provide some punch. Like Frelick, most of MLB’s teams would be very happy to have him in center. But Mitchell is, far and away, the Crew’s best option in center. The Worst Case Scenario – Jackson Chourio or Christian Yelich see significant time in center field Here’s the thing: Jackson Chourio would be one of the best center fielders in Major League Baseball. Heck, 29 other teams in MLB would love to have him in center (if the Brewers were inclined to deal him, which they aren’t, barring an insane offer that would make the Brewers’ haul in the William Contreras trade look like petty theft). So, why is it a bad sign if he sees a lot of time there? The big reason would be either injury or ineffectiveness involving Frelick, Mitchell, and Perkins, at the very least. The Brewers also elected not to try Tyler Black there despite his (limited) experience. In one sense, it is a sign of the team’s depth at this position that having a player of Chourio’s caliber starting a significant number of games is arguably the worst-case option. The same can also apply to Yelich, albeit to a lesser degree. Center field has never been his primary position, and he last played there in 2019. Overview Like left field, center field is a strength for the Brewers in many ways. Part of this stems from their strategy of having many good center fielders and moving some to left field or right field to ensure playing time. In this case, it’s about finding the best from a wealth of good choices. With so many good defenders, the bat will be the tiebreaker, which points to Mitchell – at least for 2025. That said, the Brewers can fare well with other players, either directly or indirectly, and that could include Martinez and Black, both of whom have intriguing offensive profiles. The real question of whether things go well or poorly in 2025 is how far down the depth chart they go. View full article

Jackson Chourio eventually locked down left field for the Brewers after Christian Yelich was lost for the season due to back surgery. Can he make himself a generational fixture at the position? Image courtesy of © Mark J. Rebilas-Imagn Images The Roster Situation Jackson Chourio is the incumbent at the position – finishing third in the National League Rookie of the Year voting after getting a record-breaking contract can do that. The first Brewers rookie to post a 20-20 season, he could be on an upward path if he isn’t misused as a leadoff hitter. Christian Yelich has handled left field well, being a Gold Glove finalist for the Brewers in 2018 and 2022, although he’s expected to be the team’s primary DH in 2025. Tyler Black could be an option in left field as the Brewers seek to find him a defensive home, while Isaac Collins and Brewer Hicklen could also be options. Technically, Sal Frelick, Garrett Mitchell, and Blake Perkins could also be in left field, but the Brewers would prefer them in center or right field. Among the non-roster invitees, Mark Canha and Manuel Margot are perhaps the most prominent. However, while listed as a first baseman, Ernesto Martinez has seen professional action in center field and could be a competent option in left down the road. The Best Case Scenario – Jackson Chourio plays 140+ games in left The more fans see Chourio in left field, the better for the Brewers. This means that Mitchell is healthy and taking most of the starts in center field, and Sal Frelick is healthy and taking most of the starts in right field, providing the Brewers with plenty of offense. Chourio won’t need two months to adjust to MLB pitching. Ideally, he will also be hitting second in the Brewers lineup, and he could be a consistent 30-30 threat. This is not the only scenario that can work out well for the Crew. Black could see substantial time in left, sliding Chourio to right field, since his bat has flashed real dynamism in the minors. Yelich could also see significant time in left field without hurting the Brewers, and that could be a positive development if, say, Jeferson Quero forces his way to the majors and displaces William Contreras to DH more often. The Worst Case Scenario – Mark Canha or Manuel Margot sees significant time in left Canha is not a horrible option in left field. Let’s put that out of the way. But given the higher-ceiling options the Brewers have on the 40-man roster and in Triple-A Nashville, both directly and indirectly, Canha or Margot playing a lot of left field in Milwaukee would be a bad sign. It would mean that injuries and/or hitting slumps have ravaged the Brewers roster to the point that Canha or Margot is the best option remaining. That is a sign that the Brewers’ draft position will depend on how the lottery goes, as opposed to whether they made a deep playoff run. It’s not that Canha and Margot would be awful options, but if things are going well for the Brewers, Canha and Margot are probably spending their time in Triple-A Nashville. Overview The Brewers’ depth means there are many ways for left field to go right for the Crew. Chourio playing 140+ games there would point to a stable lineup for the team. Still, suppose Chourio, Yelich, and Tyler Black become a “left field by committee,” especially if Quero and Martinez can force Contreras and Hoskins to DH by forcing their way to the majors. In that case, that is also an excellent outcome. Left field can go bad in 2025, but if it does, then it will arguably be the least of Milwaukee’s problems. View full article