Ro Mueller

Caratini hit .199, so we definitely need to pick up a #1 catcher. I assume the current plan is to carry 3 catchers on the 26-man MLB roster, since it’s so easy to bury the 13th bat. But that they’ll come to their senses before April and let Feliciano get 400+ PAs and regular catching in AAA. He needs regular playing time, in my opinion, as he’s just 23 years old.

- C Pedro Severino opts for free agency as well

I don’t have any data handy, but Yelich seems to be the guy who’s mentioned as often producing hard-hit ground-outs. If that’s the case, then yes, I’d expect him to benefit offensively from the shift ban. But that may also mean Yelich is more likely to REMAIN in the leadoff role, even as we give lots of PAs to Frelick, Mitchell and Turang. Who knows? Maybe Frelick will tap into extra power, as he’s only 22 years old. Bat him 7th or later until he has a hot streak, so we don’t have an early-Buxton situation on our hands if he struggles initially from such high expectations. Man, I hope Frelick’s second half domination carries up into MLB: .369 AVG, .975 OPS over final 281 PAs this year, with 90 hits, 25 extra-base hits, 26 walks, 24 Ks, 14 SBs.

22-year old OF Je'Von Ward saw his first competitive action since a late 2021 injury (last played August 22, 2021), doubling and scoring in the 8th inning Wednesday night in a 1-for-3 evening with a walk while manning left field. Tyler Black went 0-for-4 with a walk, again playing center field. Jeferson Quero went 0-for-4, but gunned down three baserunners . Zavier Warren DH'd, going 1-for-3 with a walk in the Desert Dogs' 6-5 defeat.

MLB debut for RHP Nash Walters, whom the Brewers traded on September 4th:

I agree that Stearns expected far more from our lefties, likely including Small. There’s no other way to explain why we added several AAAA righties (Alexander, Gott, Kelley, Mejia, Hobie Harris, Urena), but only brought in Rex Brothers on the left side. We’re honestly very lucky that Hoby Milner exceeded expectations and Brent Suter eventually found his form. Also agreed on McCutchen - overpaid and overplayed. There’s no excuse for failing to bring in someone, anyone to reduce that work load, whether they’re scrubby AAAA-types like Almonte, Mathias or Singleton or a genuine acquisition like Whit Merrifleld. You don’t just do nothing. And we even had an obvious weakness to address: struggles against left-handed pitching.

I agree that Stearns expected far more from our lefties, likely including Small. There’s no other way to explain why we added several AAAA righties (Alexander, Gott, Kelley, Mejia, Hobie Harris, Urena), but only brought in Rex Brothers on the left side. We’re honestly very lucky that Hoby Milner exceeded expectations and Brent Suter eventually found his form. Also agreed on McCutchen - overpaid and overplayed. There’s no excuse for failing to bring in someone, anyone to reduce that work load, whether they’re scrubby AAAA-types like Almonte, Mathias or Singleton or a genuine acquisition like Whit Merrifleld. You don’t just do nothing. And we even had an obvious weakness to address: struggles against left-handed pitching.

The Arizona Fall League is under way and Tyler Black is BACK (in center field, no less), while Jeferson Quero is behind the plate:

I'd predict the Brewers' offense would go 61-39 against the Nashville offense, with a ton of frustrating 3-1 affairs. As maligned as the Brewers have been, the offense is probably just below-average, rather than atrocious. A little better offense (e.g. a Whit Merrifield or Sal Frelick addition?) and/or one more dependable arm (e.g. better health for Woodruff, Peralta, Houser, Cousins, Rosenthal, Gustave, Luis Perdomo) should have put us in the playoffs. Turang's .772 OPS in AAA wouldn't put him on Adames' MLB level, nor would Singleton's 24 homers in 581 AAA plate appearances match Tellez' MLB production. We know what Reyes, Feliciano and Davis would do (not a whole lot, unfortunately). And we shouldn't pretend that Wiemer or Dahl would give us anything close to Renfroe's output. That said, the real missed opportunities, in my opinion, were not allowing switch-hitting Almonte to spell Yelich and McCutchen, Mathias to play against some lefties or Frelick to give us exceptional contact skills (16 Ks in 217 AAA plate appearances). I can't believe we paid McCutchen $8.5 million and also gave him 571 plate appearances. What?!? I'm sure he's a wonderful human being, but he can't even steal bases (8 SB vs. 6 CS). One head-scratcher in a season full of them...

We probably didn’t even need to call up the kids (Turang, Frelick, Ruiz). Just throwing guys like Mathias, Almonte and Singleton into the mix might have given the offense a modicum of life. Can’t know if you never try…

We are now supposed to revel in the moral victory of getting two bunts down, especially after a game some weeks ago when Caratini tried and failed to do just that. It’s just that I recall the lesson being to only have certain players bunt, and to preferably do it when the guy on second base is a burner. Obviously Counsell (and perhaps the players too) saw the lesson differently than I did…

Second chance for Urias to come through…

We’re supposed to content ourselves with almost getting Manny Machado once and then oh-so-nearly getting Justin Turner another time.

McCutchen is not what anyone would be looking for in an everyday DH. And yet he has one of our two hits today. Sad state of affairs. ?

I think we’re just going with our veterans and top defensive players – Jonathan Davis in center field (over Frelick/Ruiz), Patrick Dorrian at third base (over Devanney), Brian Navarreto at catcher (over Feliciano and Severino). The most difficult decision was probably Frelick vs. Ruiz for left field. Wisconsin native Caleb Boushley (12-2) gets the start for Nashville against Rays' AAA affiliate Durham in the International League Championship Game, played in Las Vegas. LF Sal Frelick carries his 41-game on-base streak into the contest, though I’m guessing these stats won’t count in their season totals (we’ll see!). Let’s go Sounds!!! A victory would put Nashville into tomorrow’s final against old friend Jake Hager and the Reno Aces.

Timber Rattler Director of Bullpen Operations Pat McGuff had some comments in Chris Mehring’s September 14 SoundCloud interview, talking about how they helped Floyd with a mentality shift, as he was stressed out over poor results and things outside of his control. The positivity shift helped him return to being more aggressive and confident, without really making serious adjustments on the “pitch side”. Floyd was a guy that many of us expected to continue rocketing up the system (2.89 ERA in 2021 with a 13.5 K/9 rate?!?). But instead, he basically ended up in a group with Alec Bettinger and Ashton McGee – respectable prospects who put up inexplicably woeful numbers out of the gate in 2022, with Bettinger and Floyd initially given some leeway due to starting their seasons late (May 4th for Floyd). Through 25 games in 2022, Floyd’s ERA was 9.20 and he’d struck out 29 batters in 612 pitches (21.1 pitches/K ratio vs. 10.8 in 2021), before he re-discovered his skills: 1.33 ERA over final 16 games with 38 Ks in 469 pitches (12.3 pitches/K ratio). That level of deviation can’t be explained simply as a function of level (largely AA vs. High-A in this case), so it’s great to hear they helped him get out of that funk. I’m sure they’ll give him another turn at AA Biloxi to start next season and it should go far better this time around.

Timber Rattler Director of Bullpen Operations Pat McGuff had some comments in Chris Mehring’s September 14 SoundCloud interview, talking about how they helped Floyd with a mentality shift, as he was stressed out over poor results and things outside of his control. The positivity shift helped him return to being more aggressive and confident, without really making serious adjustments on the “pitch side”. Floyd was a guy that many of us expected to continue rocketing up the system (2.89 ERA in 2021 with a 13.5 K/9 rate?!?). But instead, he basically ended up in a group with Alec Bettinger and Ashton McGee – respectable prospects who put up inexplicably woeful numbers out of the gate in 2022, with Bettinger and Floyd initially given some leeway due to starting their seasons late (May 4th for Floyd). Through 25 games in 2022, Floyd’s ERA was 9.20 and he’d struck out 29 batters in 612 pitches (21.1 pitches/K ratio vs. 10.8 in 2021), before he re-discovered his skills: 1.33 ERA over final 16 games with 38 Ks in 469 pitches (12.3 pitches/K ratio). That level of deviation can’t be explained simply as a function of level (largely AA vs. High-A in this case), so it’s great to hear they helped him get out of that funk. I’m sure they’ll give him another turn at AA Biloxi to start next season and it should go far better this time around.

What a debut season it was for Carlos F. Rodriguez, settling in after a rocky start to dominate with a 2.27 ERA over his final 22 games. In a tough selection for voters, Rodriguez emerged the winner ahead of 12-win Caleb Boushley, 11-win Brandon Knarr and other terrific prospects. Image courtesy of Neal Hock (graphics by Thieres Rabelo) What a debut season it was for Carlos F. Rodriguez, settling in after a rocky start to dominate with a 2.27 ERA over his final 22 games. In a tough selection for voters, Rodriguez emerged the winner ahead of 12-win Caleb Boushley, 11-win Brandon Knarr and other terrific prospects. A sixth-round draft pick out of Florida Southwestern State College in 2021 who didn’t make his organizational debut until April this year, Carlos F. Rodriguez got ever-stronger as the season chugged along, nipping many worthy candidates for this prestigious award. Low-A/High-A Stats (26 G): 6-5 record, 3.01 ERA, 1.06 WHIP, 129 K, 40 BB, 107 2/3 IP, 1 Save While the aggregate numbers may not be jaw-dropping, let’s see what happens when we exclude the four initial nerve-wracking outings from before Mr. Rodriguez got his feet settled under him: 2.27 ERA, 0.96 WHIP, .170 batting average against, 121 Ks vs. 38 walks in 99 1/3 innings over his final 22 games. The 20-year-old 6’0” Nicaraguan native was the Brewers’ top starting pitcher in Low-A Carolina for most of the season, registering the top WHIP (1.12 vs. Stiven Cruz’ 1.31) and second-best ERA (3.53 vs. Alexander Cornielle’s 3.19) before earning a deserved promotion to High-A Wisconsin on August 3rd. Then in seven starts as a Timber Rattler, Rodriguez’s results got even better, as he went 3-1 with a 1.98 ERA and 0.94 WHIP with 45 Ks in 36 1/3 innings pitched, perhaps tempting Brewers’ brass to consider an early promotion to AA Biloxi in 2023. Despite the 107 2/3 innings of work, the game logs suggest that the Brewers actually held Carlos back a bit, as he never threw more than 89 pitches in any contest. Of course, this makes it even more remarkable that he struck out five or more batters in 15 of his 26 outings. Congratulations to Carlos Fernando Rodriguez! Runner-Up: Brandon Knarr, LHP High-A/AA (26 G): 11-8 record, 2.83 ERA, 1.22 WHIP, 152 K, 47 BB, 146 1/3 IP In a way, Brandon Knarr was also a sixth-round draft pick, albeit in 2020 when MLB reduced the draft to only five rounds. As such, the Brewers snapped him up as an undrafted free agent out of the University of Tampa. This year, Knarr was simply dominant in High-A ball, delivering a 1.57 ERA (4th best in the league) and 0.98 WHIP (11th best in the league) and earning seven victories while striking out 65 batters against just 13 walks. After turning 24 years old, Brandon was promoted to AA Biloxi on June 7th, where the sailing was rougher but still very respectable: 3.64 ERA, 1.37 WHIP, 87 Ks vs. 34 walks. With nearly 150 innings under his belt in 2022, I suspect that Knarr is facing a relatively quiet offseason. Second Runner-Up: Caleb Boushley, RHP AAA Stats (25 G): 12-2 record, 3.25 ERA, 1.17 WHIP, 91 K, 43 BB, 127 1/3 IP Being the winningest pitcher in the International League was enough to earn Hortonville, Wisconsin native Boushley the Sounds’ Pitcher of the Year Award, but only garnered him third place on this list. Don’t worry, he’s earning other dividends, including an upcoming start in the AAA playoffs tonight(!) in Las Vegas. The 28-year-old, former 33rd-round pick of the Padres out of UW-La Crosse in 2017 was wisely selected by the Brewers in the minor-league phase of the Rule 5 draft in December 2021, serving as a steady rock amidst the constant roster changes which typify AAA baseball. Caleb may not overwhelm the opposition with strikeouts, but the man consistently induces weak contact (.226 batting average and .667 OPS against). Will Boushley earn a spot on the 26-man MLB roster next spring? Third Runner-Up: Stiven Cruz, RHP Low-A/High-A Stats (19 G): 4-6 record, 3.74 ERA, 1.17 WHIP, 109 K, 24 BB, 91 1/3 IP Signed as an international free agent in July 2019, Cruz had to wait just over two years to make his organizational debut in the Dominican Summer League in 2021. Despite solid results there (1.37 ERA with 73 Ks in 52 2/3 IP), it was still a surprise when the 20-year-old from Nicaragua bypassed the Arizona Complex League and was promoted directly to Low-A Carolina in May 2022. However, Cruz immediately dazzled by opening the season with 12 strikeouts over eight shutout innings. After an up-and-down middle part of the season (5.43 ERA over 12 games), Cruz finished with a flourish: 0.39 ERA over his final five games, four of which were at High-A Wisconsin. Honorable Mentions: Justin Jarvis, RHP (High-A/AA): 11-9 record, 3.83 ERA, 1.32 WHIP, 150 K, 66 BB, 141 IP Selected in the 5th round of the 2018 draft out of Lake Norman High School (NC), Jarvis needed a few years under his belt to learn to excel in High-A ball, but came through admirably this season. The 22-year-old posted a 1.29 WHIP and 10.0 K/9 ratio in 24 starts at Wisconsin, before moving up to AA Biloxi for his final four starts (2.70 ERA in 20 AA innings). Alexander Cornielle, RHP (Low-A/High-A): 10-7 record, 3.03 ERA, 1.31 WHIP, 145 K, 59 BB, 119 IP Cornielle was a July 2019 international signing who threw just four innings in his first two years in the organization before making his stateside debut in Arizona in July 2021. This season, the now-21-year-old Dominican Republic native broke camp with Low-A Carolina and was something of a Houdini the first two months (3.22 ERA, 1.60 WHIP in 36 1/3 IP) before significantly cutting down on traffic the rest of the year (2.94 ERA, 1.19 WHIP over final 82 2/3 IP), including three starts at High-A Wisconsin to finish a very encouraging campaign. Antoine Kelly, LHP (High-A): 2-4 record, 3.86 ERA, 1.23 WHIP, 119 K, 52 BB, 91 IP Since traded to Texas alongside Mark Mathias for Matt Bush, 22-year old Kelly spent most of 2022 as the Brewers’ perceived top pitching prospect, dominating opposition over the first three months (3.27 ERA, 1.10 WHIP, .181 batting average against, 93 Ks in 71 2/3 IP). However, the expected promotion of the 2019 second-round pick to AA didn’t materialize (Walk issues? Tired arm? Diminish Rule 5 selection prospects?). After a rough July (6.05 ERA, 18 walks in 19 1/3 IP), the trade went through and Kelly had some struggles at AA Frisco over his final seven games (7.23 ERA in 18 2/3 IP). Victor Castaneda, RHP (AA/AAA): 6-6 record, 4.10 ERA, 1.35 WHIP, 118 K, 52 BB, 120 2/3 IP An international signing out of Mexico in July 2017, Castaneda produced his third straight solid season, ranking second amongst Biloxi starters in ERA (3.97, after Knarr) and WHIP (1.35, after LHP Nick Bennett). The now-24-year-old’s strikeouts declined versus prior years (8.8 K/9 vs. 10.8 in 2019/2021), but thankfully so did his ERA (4.10 vs. 4.76 in 2019/2021). Three starts at AAA Nashville concluded his 2022 campaign, which is presumably where he’ll commence in 2023. Which Brewers’ starting pitching prospects do you have your eyes on? Would you have selected a different award winner? Your comments are welcome! View full article

My list: Jackson Chourio - OF Sal Frelick - OF Brice Turang - SS Joey Wiemer - OF Esteury Ruiz - OF Robert Gasser - P Tyler Black - 2B Carlos F. Rodriguez - P Garrett Mitchell - OF Jeferson Quero - C Ethan Small - P Felix Valerio - 2B Eric Brown Jr. - SS Stiven Cruz - P Hendry Mendez - OF Cam Devanney - SS Jacob Misiorowski - P Cam Robinson - P Eduardo Garcia - SS Jace Avina - OF I think our prospect depth is terrific when I'm leaving out guys like Brandon Knarr, Robert Moore, Logan Henderson, Mario Feliciano, Freddy Zamora, Victor Castaneda, Justin Jarvis, Jadher Areinamo, Luis Castillo, Daniel Guilarte...

Selecting the Relief Pitcher award winner was a no brainer. Cam Robinson – the guy who led the entire minor leagues in saves, often of the multi-inning variety. Stat of the Year: Wisconsin won 25 of the 28 games in which Mr. Robinson pitched! Image courtesy of Bobby McDuffie Selecting the Relief Pitcher award winner was a no brainer. Cam Robinson – the guy who led the entire minor leagues in saves, often of the multi-inning variety. Stat of the Year: Wisconsin won 25 of the 28 games in which Mr. Robinson pitched! Sometimes, the more traditional stats matter*. Through August 19th, RHP Cam Robinson’s 25 saves led all of Minor League Baseball. And even with zero save opportunities over the final 40 days of the season, Robinson still ended the season atop the MiLB Saves Leaderboard. High-A/AA Stats (41 G): 3-1 record, 1.38 ERA, 0.98 WHIP, 68 K, 22 BB, 52 IP, 25 Saves AAA Stats (11 G): Not quite as pretty. To be improved in 2023! A 23rd-round draft pick out of Orlando’s University High School in 2017, Robinson started to blossom at Low-A Carolina in 2021 and reached an impressive level of dominance at High-A Wisconsin and AA Biloxi in 2022, forcing the Brewers into a tough decision of whether to add him to the 40-man MLB roster by November 20th or risk losing him in the Rule 5 draft on December 8th. As the Timber Rattlers’ offense struggled to get runs across in the early months of the season, Robinson was lockdown in the ‘pen, earning 19 saves and 3 wins in 28 games at Wisconsin. In fact, the Timber Rattlers won a whopping 25 of the 28 games in which Mr. Robinson pitched! Of those 28 High-A outings, 11 covered more than one inning of work, including nine games in which he covered two full innings. Enjoy the mastery: Promoted to AA Biloxi on July 4, Robinson didn’t miss a beat, posting a 1.23 ERA and 0.89 WHIP while grabbing another 6 saves in 14 2/3 innings of work: Intrigued by that level of dominance, the Brewers promoted Robinson to AAA Nashville on August 23rd, where he understandably struggled in 13 innings (6.92 ERA, 1.85 WHIP), presenting him with a new challenge for next year. Having just turned 23 years old, once Robinson is able to replicate his amazing ground-out to air-out ratio (3.14 at Wisconsin, 2.57 at Biloxi) in baseball’s higher echelons, he should have a long, successful major league career. Runner-Up: James Meeker, RHP High-A/AA (44 G): 4-4 record, 2.38 ERA, 1.06 WHIP, 57 K, 17 BB, 64 1/3 IP, 17 Saves There aren’t many players who get their first opportunity in affiliated baseball at age 26; fewer still the number who thrive. James Meeker, signed by the Brewers in August 2021, has been a terrific find, producing a minuscule 0.50 ERA at Low-A Carolina in 18 innings last year and continuing his excellence at High-A Wisconsin this year. With Robinson racking up the majority of the early season save chances, 27-year old Meeker didn’t move into a consistent closer role until July 30th, from which point he notched 12 saves (in 13 opportunities) over his next 16 games, producing a 0.44 ERA over this period and ultimately earning a promotion to AA Biloxi on September 13th. In all, James’ 17 saves this season placed him seventh in the whole of Minor League Baseball. Second Runner-Up: Peter Strzelecki, RHP AAA Stats (27 G): 3-0 record, 2.84 ERA, 0.88 WHIP, 50 K, 10 BB, 31 2/3 IP, 3 Saves Given his excellent work in the majors (3.06 ERA with 38 Ks in 32 1/3 IP), it’s easy to forget that Strzelecki didn’t make his Major League debut until June 2nd this year. Taking it back a little, he hadn’t even played AA ball until May 5, 2021. Yes, it’s been a rapid rise for the man who originally went undrafted out of the University of South Florida in 2018. Early this season, 27-year old Strzelecki underpinned the fabulous Nashville Sounds’ bullpen, producing the top WHIP in the 20-team International League before earning his deserved promotion to Milwaukee, whilst delivering a whopping 14.2 K/9 rate and earning four victories and three saves in the process. Hopefully, this will also be the year that Peter makes his MLB playoff debut. Third Runner-Up: Trevor Kelley, RHP AAA Stats (34 G): 3-3 record, 2.36 ERA, 1.14 WHIP, 42 K, 10 BB, 34 1/3 IP, 9 Saves Kelley has been another dependable anchor in the Nashville bullpen, while also shuttling back-and-forth to the Brewers on five occasions. The 29-year-old joined the organization on a minor league contract in November 2021 and delivered immediate results in AAA, giving up just one run over his first 23 appearances. Fourth Runner-Up: Hobie Harris, RHP AAA Stats (53 G): 4-3 record, 2.04 ERA, 1.08 WHIP, 56 K, 28 BB, 53 IP, 8 Saves Equally deserving of a call-up to The Show but not as fortunate as his peers in that regard, Harris kept his focus on the task-at-hand in leading Sounds’ pitchers in games played (53), relief innings pitched, and ranked second on the team in saves. Hitting minor league free agency for the first time in November 2021, Harris opted to sign with the Brewers. After being a vital part of Nashville’s 91-win season and hopefully winning a postseason title in Las Vegas, the 29-year-old Harris will undoubtedly be looking to sign a major league contract this offseason. Honorable Mentions: Luis Contreras, RHP (AA): 3-2 record, 3.00 ERA, 1.21 WHIP, 59 K, 21 BB, 42 IP, 1 Save Born in Venezuela but listed as a Florida native, Contreras went undrafted and started his professional career in independent ball in 2019 before signing with the Brewers in June 2019. After Covid wiped out the 2020 season and he was injured for most of 2021, it was impressive to see the 26-year old register success in a leap to AA ball in 2022, striking out 12.6 batters per nine innings. Michele Vassalotti, RHP (Low-A): 9-2 record, 2.64 ERA, 1.11 WHIP, 56 K, 24 BB, 47 2/3 IP, 7 Saves An international signing as a 16-year-old in 2017, Italian-Venezuelan Vassalotti fell off the prospect map a bit with tough seasons in 2019 and 2021, but reinvigorated his career in a shift to bullpen work this year. Through his first 35 2/3 innings pitched this season, the 22-year-old had struck out 46 batters against only nine walks, but apparently tired down the stretch (15 walks in his final 12 innings). Give the man some deserved rest and let’s see how he fares at higher levels in 2023. Pablo Garabitos, LHP (Low-A): 6-1 record, 1.61 ERA, 0.96 WHIP, 61 K, 16 BB, 56 IP The first and only left-handed reliever on this list, Garabitos was a 2018 international signing from the Dominican Republic as an outfielder, before shifting to pitching in 2019. Now 22 years old, Pablo produced the 5th-best WHIP in the 12-team Carolina League and was the youngest pitcher in the league with a WHIP below 1.09. Although he didn’t make any starts, he averaged 2.33 innings per outing, covering as much as five innings on occasion and even throwing 87 pitches in one late-season victory. Will Mr. Garabitos shift into a starting role in 2023? * Of course, Saves did not become an official MLB statistic until 1969, but it’s fair to say they qualify as a traditional stat that was held in higher esteem before the sabermetric revolution. Which of the Brewers’ contingent of terrific minor league relief pitchers do you expect to become solid major leaguers one day? Would you have ranked these players differently? Your comments are welcome! View full article

Agreed that each are solid prospects. Thank you for highlighting them. I hope Aquino’s injury is not long or damaging. If it’s nothing serious, then he’ll be right alongside Vallecillo and Briceno in that January 2021 international signing class, in my opinion.

Agreed that each are solid prospects. Thank you for highlighting them. I hope Aquino’s injury is not long or damaging. If it’s nothing serious, then he’ll be right alongside Vallecillo and Briceno in that January 2021 international signing class, in my opinion.

Yeah, just 13 innings in short season ball, so he wouldn’t show up as a qualifier in BaseballRef’s key stats. 29 1/3 IP in full season ball.