Joseph Zarr

I can not believe the Big Woo start we all just witnessed. That was electric. It seemed to me that was the most dialed in and accurate a starter has been all season for the Brewers. He was absolutely painting all facets of the Zone. Just an unreal performance. As he said previously, that come backer to the elbow appears to have been a mini miracle. He definitely tapped into some minor modifications that have bumped him up another level. What a performance. What a story. Quite easily my favorite 'W' of the season.

I'd say more than a chance. Seems to me a likelihood. He was pulled and PH for before his first AB today vs Memphis. Seemed, at that moment, with this news it became a near certainty.

Man, I am absolutely hurting for EMJ. Had the thumb injury. Brewers picked up two MILB vets in Dalbec and Vaughn. He hasn't been the same since the combination of these events. 0-for-4, 3K batting ninth. He desperately needs a mental reset and regroup to get back to the type of player we all know he is.

You could legit argue (quite easily, I might add) it was the best performance by a Brewers starter all year. Absolutely electric. From the jump. Closing out by touching 96 mph. It was surreal.

- RHP Chad Patrick has been optioned to the Nashville Sounds by the Milwaukee Brewers (the corresponding move to the RHP Brandon Woodruff re-instatement)

A nice seven-spot between Jay and Payamps in the sixth has the Sounds knotted at 8-8 Yeesh.

Just a friendly FYI @Jim Goulart. I spoke to this in a game thread a day or so ago. The plan is a back-to-back set of appearances. The 7-inning outing was indeed pre-planned. If everything is indeed going as planned and on schedule we 'should' see him back on the diamond tonight going the full 9-innings. His first full game. His first set of back-to-backs - given his injury pun intended?

One of my favorite seasons despite the low volume due to IL. He is a completely different player today than when he first arrived in the system. He is now a chiseled and sleek tall lefty - he's done real work getting rid of the 'baby fat' (for a lack of a better term - sorry Brian! This is a real compliment.). AND, he is now completely on the attack as a pitcher. He is no longer holding back. He trusts his stuff and the plan of attack and it very clearly shows. I personally think there are even more velo levels here with another one or two off-seasons to work with his new body. BUT, you can't deny the consistency of pure results the past two seasons. That type of stacked output carries weight. Continue to lovethe change-up. Extremely deceptive pitch.

Kuehner was fantastic to start 2024 in Wisconsin. He realllllly struggled to end 2024 - carried into his playoff start vs Montgomery. He struggled to get going very early in 2025 - if I remember correctly he didn't get his first strikeout until his 3rd or 4th start? It was very odd and, at the time given the way he ended 2024, concerning. Since that time it's all come together and he's taken another leap. The thing I love about Kuehner is he can move the ball in all directions - ie he isn't limited to that sweeping slider as the strikeout pitch. He can dip his pitches arm side. And, he can play off the multi-directionality with a heater that plays up in the zone. He can bring that vertical with ride or he can tail it arm side as well. He has a lot of tools to work with - something I said in his first week as a Timber Rattler. You never know how it will come together and evolve for a player when they face new levels of competition. - RHP K.C. Hunt's hiccup in his development path in 2025 speaks to this. You never know if the dominant run will stick or it's a fleeting period of dominance. BUT, what we do know is LHP Tate Kuehner is deserving of flowers. It's really nice to see the recognition.

The T-Rats have absolutely reverted to their early first half form to start their second half. This is just an ugly ugly way to play at Home. How many more lives does the cat that is Yerlin Rodriguez have? You can only repeat the exact same issues and the exact same seasons so many times before a team releases you. You can have all the talent in the world but if you can't control your arsenal for longer than a month you just don't have a long life in affiliated baseball. It feels like the Brewers have had an absurdly long leash here...and that's because the raw goods are that good. BUT the raw goods are ridiculously inconsistent.

Walther took a foul ball directly off his throwing hand leading to his exit. Perhaps this is a potential look at what length of absence we might guesstimate for Peña

It may be time to start taking real notice of 16-year-old Dominican RHP Steven Duran. Not only does he share my birthday (July 24th) but he just put up another impressive performance. 3.0 IP, 2 H, 0 BB, 1 WP, 4 K, 0 R. DSL Brewers Blue knotted up 1-1 in the bottom of the 6th at Home.

Crow is scoreless through 3.0 IP. 5 K. This just in: the Hook plays at Triple-A as well. Who knew?!?

That is indeed the plan as of today. Things can change in my farming world but I am trying to make it happen.

Who is Coleman Crow? Let's just say he was brought off the IL when his XRays came back looking like this: Dawg. He's an absolute Dawg.

Amazing! Not out of the clear yet BUT this would be incredible news! Tentative big sigh of relief.

With Arizona idle, I thought I'd give a mini update: Just got off the horn with a couple birdies in the ACL Complex. The current plan with Adamczewski appears to be 7-innings Friday followed by a back-to-back 9-innings Saturday. Early signs are his body responded well after Game 1. Huge news given what we saw with Peña last night. Get healthy and stay healthy, young man! I want to watch you in Zebulon come Playoff time!

Image courtesy of Brewer Fanatic Transactions: LHP Nestor Cortes was officially assigned to the Nashville Sounds from the Milwaukee Brewers to begin his rehab assignment RHP Alexander Vallecillo was activated from the 60-Day IL by the ACL Brewers RHP Craig Yoho was recalled by the Milwaukee Brewers from the Nashville Sounds Final: , Nashville 2, Memphis (Cardinals) 1 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 Get Back in Win Column Wednesday Night - Andrew Vaughn Delivers Game-Winning Two-Out RBI Double Late Box Score/Game Log Game Notes (**The Sounds did not update their game notes for game two**) The Sounds are back in the win column after a four game skid and they have LHP Nestor Cortes and the bullpen to thank for it. Cortes was purported to be aiming toward a fifty pitch first outing but I have a feeling the efficiency was overridden by an inning limit as well. Three up and downs in this case. Cortes pitched three scoreless frames of one hit and four strikeout ball - the lone hit a two-out bunt single in his final inning. His outing ended at 37 pitches. He was extremely efficient and accurate from the jump with a first frame of all four-seamers and a sole cutter. The Redbirds line up featured seven lefties and Cortes feasted. He was generally sitting 89-93 mph as he played with his four-seamer. He mixed in his patented drop down arm slot when ahead in counts. He truly looked fantastic. For a debut, I don't think we could ask for much more. If he bounces back favorably from this outing, we might imagine his rehab stint is going to go the minimum. Yes, he looked that good. Three Quick Strikes: 1) The evening of the same day as our RHP Joel Payamps discussion in the Minor League game thread (brought to us by our very own @Jake McKibbin), RHP Joel Payamps picked up his first Save as a member of the Sounds. 1.0 IP, 0 H, 0 BB, 1 K. 11 pitches. 8 strikes. It truly is hard to find a better version of Payamps than the one we are seeing right now. He may have lost his spot on the Brewers 40-Man, but it is beginning to look like a case of the League missing out on an opportunity to scoop him up without a service charge when they had the chance. I don't know what happens from here, but Payamps has clearly turned himself into an MLB-level asset in short order since his DFA. You love to see a player right their ship and head confidently into smoother waters behind the best version of themselves. 2) The unsung hero in this One will be the fast-evolving suddenly consistently dependable LHP Bruce Zimmerman. His core relief work spanned 4 1/3 IP of 6 H, 0 BB, 4 K, 1 ER work. He threw 62 pitches with 43 landing for strikes. Zimmerman's ERA is now trending on the right side of 5.00 at 4.85. As he's gotten more comfortable in his role within the staff - hey, he's in a new organization after all let's cut the man some slack - Zimmerman has begun giving meaningful innings on a near every outing basis. Once the calendar flipped to June, Zimmerman has essentially eliminated the long ball. He has now given five solid outing out of his past six. This has been an unsung boon within the greater Sounds pitching staff. Despite his penchant for giving up contact, if Zimmerman can keep it in the park he's going to eat innings. 3) 1B Andrew Vaughn continues to settle in and provide big hits in the middle of the Sounds line up. As Ernesto Martinez Jr. has unfortunately seen his playing time and impact decrease since his early season thumb injury (not to mention the mini log jam induced by the bevy of in-season veteran acquisitions), Vaughn has eaten up many of those innings. Tonight, it was Vaughn's savvy to sit back on a hanging slider that ultimately won the game in the eighth frame: Special Shout Out: 2B Raynel Delgado has grabbed hold of that everyday Sounds second baseman job and hasn't really relinquished it but for some minor timeshare with recently called up Anthony Seigler and INF Freddy Zamora. Delgado is a fairly smooth and heady player so it is always nice to see that rewarded with a 3-for-3 night at the dish. He plated one of the two runs. He picked up his ninth double of his season. With the win, the Sounds improved to 3-5 in the second half. Final(s): Game 1: Biloxi 10, Pensacola (Marlins) 4 Box Score/Game Log Game 2: Pensacola (Marlins) 5, Biloxi 1 - Final/7 Innings Box Score/Game Log Boeve Reaches Base Six Times in Doubleheader Split - Shuckers Bats Explode for 10-4 Game One Win Game Notes A combined relief effort in game one helped solidify what ultimately became a pull away victory. RHP Alexander Cornielle gave us one of those Alexander Cornielle bend but don't break outings in game two. His line will ultimately read 4 2/3 IP, 5 H, 3 BB, 7 K, 1 HR, 1 WP, 1 Balk, 4 ER. He left the bump with the Shuckers trailing 3-1. He used 84 pitches throwing 53 strikes. RHP Ryan Middendorf proceeded to let his inherited runner cross (Cornielle's fourth charged run). It just hasn't gotten any easier for Middendorf since being re-assigned to Biloxi. He is treading on thin ice. His 1 1/3 Ip of 1 H, 1 BB, 1 K, 1 ER paints a rosier picture than the quality of the outing itself. I can't remember the last outing Middendorf appeared and looked sharp from the jump. I would likely have to travel back to a point in his 2024 season. Three Quick Strikes: 1) I mentioned it in the night's game thread (HERE), but it just needs to be emphasized again here: INF Ethan Murray is showcasing legitimate MLB upside in 2025. He looks fit. He looks stronger (he has added meaningful mass this past off-season). He looks healthy. Here on July 2nd, having spent nearly an entire month on the IL, he has already set a career high in long balls with his seven. It came tonight on a scorched 3-0 rocket over the left field wall: He was later robbed of a double (at least) down the left field line when the infield ump somehow missed the call (honestly, a trend throughout with tonight's crew). When a player such as Murray - who plays electric defense at every spot on the left side of the infield and has the cannon arm to match any angle of throw - takes another step with the bat in his hands, you take notice. I personally think he is positively one of the most slept on players in the entire system. This is the leap we thought we might see in 2024. I propose he played through injury (or injuries). What we are seeing so far in 2025 is a whole different beast. 2) Dating back to his healthy days of 2024 as a Biloxi Shucker, one thing is clear: INF Mike Boeve loves hitting at Pensacola's ballpark. It's uncanny. He picked up where he left off with a 3-for-4, 1 R, 3 RBI, 1 K, 1 3B Game One. I personally still don't see the same quality of hitter we saw before the shoulder injury (the elevated K rate is my main emphasis here). I don't know what exactly to attribute this to - is he still working through scar tissue? Is he just rusty? Is he simply pressing? Regardless, I am thankful Boeve is relatively healthy today and continuing to put forth AB's. He's obviously being protected from pushing things too far with his vastly limited defensive reps. Let's hope he can stay hot in Pensacola: 3) It was quite nice to notice the camaraderie in the Shuckers dugout and their bullpen throughout both contests. You can see it plain as day - these young men enjoy playing with each other and they enjoy each other's company. We also saw INF Luke Adams sitting atop the dugout bench with his eyes on the games. Great to see him in and amongst the team. It's truly a testament to the greater depth of the Shuckers team as a whole when they lose players the caliber of 3B Brock Wilken and the budding lead-off phenom in Luke Adams and they are still very much right in the thick of it at 5-3 overall in the second half. Not that any of that matters, all things considered... Final: Beloit (Marlins) 4, Wisconsin 1 Sky Carp Steal a Win - Beloit Swipes Nine Bases in 4-1 Victory over Wisconsin Box Score/Game Log Game Notes One thing was obvious before the Sky Carp put on their DSL best nine stolen bases (in 11 attempts): C Blayberg Diaz simply has nowhere near the pop nor the arm of one C Marco Dinges. Remember our emerging catcher superstar in C Marco Dinges? Good grief he was taken from us much too soon this summer. Thankfully, his local news teams are still giving him shine. We'll all obviously have to wait and see on the hamstring strain - those are rarely straightforward. LHP Sam Garcia continued his recent run of improved starts in the Midwest League. His final line reads 4 2/3 IP of 4 H, 3 BB, 3 K, 1 HR (a solo shot over the LF wall on a high inside heater), 3 R (1 Earned). He was done in on an aggressive take and short-hop botch by 3B Juan Baez - it was a routine hop to SS Jadher Areinamo who had the real play on the ball. Had Baez managed to field and throw that ball cleanly, Garcia pitches five complete. Baez is nothing as a player if not overly aggressive. He wins some. He loses some. But, he is never not aggressive. Always likely to swing at a first pitch. Always likely to go for the spectacular. It's obviously important to remember Baez is a just turned 20-year-old prospect but I do wonder aloud how he'll mature as a player in the seasons ahead. There truly isn't all that much more to discuss in this one for the Rattlers. Their sole run came on a SS Jadher Areinamo sacrifice fly - a run manufactured by LF Yhoswar Garcia swiping his 35th base after a lead-off single and then advancing to third base on a DH Hedbert Perez ground out. They were outhit 6-to-3 and were a mere 0-for-3 with RISP. The Timber Rattlers offense is very much capable of sleepy nights like this. The loss of Dinges impacted Carolina's line up immensely. The loss of Dinges will impact the Timber Rattlers line up immensely. Of this I am certain. With the loss the T-Rats fell to 3-8 in the second half. They are currently last in the Midwest League West division. Final: Carolina 4, Fayetteville (Astros) 3 - Final/10 Innings Mudcats Beat Fayetteville in Extra Innings - Hernandez Leads with Yet Another Stellar Start Box Score/Game Log Game Notes RHP Melvin Hernandez is giving off serious 2024 RHP Manuel Rodriguez vibes. He has fast become the low-velo Ace on the Mudcats pitching staff in 2025. It's uncanny. The scrappy 19-year-old Nicaraguan, at just a shade under 6'0", continues to defy his diminutive stature by repeatedly demonstrating he simply knows the breadth of tools in his bag and he knows how to use them. 5 1/3 IP of 3 H, 1 BB, 1 HB, 6 K, and 1 ER work tonight. He tossed 83 pitches with 53 landing for strikes. Hernandez has now allowed a mere three earned runs over his last 33.0 IP. That spans four Starts and six appearances overall. He has 26 K's to a mere four free passes and two hit batters in that span. If you have not found the time to watch Hernandez toss the white pillow, I highly recommend you do so when he is pitching at this level. It is a true joy to witness. Three Quick Strikes: 1) The real story, unfortunately, in this game two victory was the likely loss of one phenom 2B Luis Peña. I don't want to make any type of formal declarations here. BUT, the inside pitch he took off his left hand - a 94 mph four-seamer up and in - could be heard in the telecast. It was a scrunch of a smack as he held firm to the lower end of his bat. He dropped his bat and immediately writhed in pain behind home plate. The athletic trainer came to his aid and it was quite discernible that as she pressed that hand or wrist Peña cowered in immense sharp pain. It was a truly awful sight given the recent and ongoing (seriously, what in the heck is going on!) spate of injuries we've seen across the upper echelon of top prospects within the Brewers system. We can only hope he avoided something major here. I always tell it to you straight: it did not look good. 2) Have a night DH Pedro Ibarguen. Let me just say: he absolutely looks the part. Physically he has a very real stature to his figure - he is built. His 3-for-4, 1 RBI, 1 BB night included the game winning walk-off in the tenth frame: He also successfully stole second base but, well, my ongoing contention with the Minor League umpires carries on with the same fervor as ever. He was safe. It will be marked a 'CS' in his season's tally. His first such mark all year. I didn't expect Ibarguen to hit the Low-A ground running but he's actually done more than that. He's invoked a real sense of "We might really have something here!" in me. 3) Just one night after lauding 1B Eric Bitonti for his professional and consistent approach, he rewards me with a 2-for-4, 1 R, 2 RBI, 1 BB, 1 K, 1 HR evening. He has 13 long balls in 2025. He now has 50 RBI. There is so much more in this young man's bag. I simply can not wait to continue watching him grow as a player and as a man. I know his prospect shine has been knocked down a peg with his early season struggles and his sole focus at first base. But, I'm here to tell you I just don't think it matters all that much when it's all said and done. He's a legitimate threat every time he steps to the dish. The swing is as pure as they come. The maturation and the fine-tuning will come as he matures. He is a devotee to the grind. We are getting some mid-season rewards as a result. Let's keep going. I mean tell me you don't see some vintage Geoff Jenkins in this swing: With the game two victory, the Mudcats improved their second half record to 8-3. They are atop their division once again. Final: ACL Mariners 6, ACL Brewers 1 - Final/7 Innings Box Score/Game Log It was the long awaited return of one RHP Alexander Vallecillo. It did not go all that smoothly, sadly. 1/3 IP of 2 H, 2 BB, 1 HR, 4 ER ball. He had a brief 1-0 lead. He was greeted by a first pitch home run. In total, Vallecillo threw 11 pitches and only three landed for strikes. Granted, two of the four runs he was charged came via two of RHP Jose Meneses' three wild pitches. Yes, Meneses tipped his cap to one RHP Yerlin Rodriguez and threw three WP in 2/3 IP. Yikes! RHP Tyler Renz and RHP Wenderlyn King did the heavy lifting as they combined to throw 5.0 IP of 5 H, 1 BB, 2 K, 2 ER, 2 HR ball. They each gave up a solo shot but how about a shout out to their combined 27 pitches thrown and 23 strikes landing. That is absolutely nutso precise. It's hard to muster anything beyond this when the offense combines for a 1-for-2 with RISP while leaving a mere two runners on base. That's just not enough opportunity to make a dent in their early deficit. This being said, we acknowledge lead-off DH Jorge Quintana had an effective 2-for-3, 1 R, 1 2B day at the dish. LF Jadyn Fielder also collected two knocks in a 2-for-2. With the loss the ACL Crew fell to 23-22 overall. Our DSL Brewers brethren will be back at it in the morning Caribbean sun (we hope!). With the ACL Crew off for the evening, we will see RHP Travis Smith try to bounce back for Carolina. Nashville is listed as 'TBD' but for those perusing our game threads you know I shared RHP Coleman Crow is scheduled to come off the IL and debut with the Sounds. RHP Brett Wichrowski will toe the rubber in Pensacola. And, RHP Ryan Birchard will once again try to eeek out more punch outs than walks. Come on Ryan, we both know you have filthy tools. Let's start making strides in the walk department. You got this. As always, thanks for reading and thanks for supporting Brewers Minor League baseball. 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 View full article

Pedro Ibarguen turns out the lights with a walk-off single into LF on a 3-2 count. Swung at a 3-0 ball four. Swung and missed at a slider. Did not miss and poked it through the left side to score Di Turi. 4-3 Mudcats victory.

What a Houdini act by LHP Bjorn Johnson. First batter shows bunt...he fires a WP to the backstop. Runner advances to 3B without contact. That batter walks. Runners on the corners. Nobody out. Pop out to the catcher. Pop out to 2B. 3-2 count swinging K on a breaker. He was struggling with losing his pitches glove side. Heck of a gritty escape. The Mudcats will once again try to walk it off with Manfred's Man on 2B (should be Di Turi).

AND, not to be. Jam shot bloop fly out to shallow LF. On to Extras.

Di Turi has a chance to walk it off here in the bottom of the 9th. Men on 1st and 2nd. Two down. 3-3 game. José Anderson just worked a full count walk.

Oh hey another homeplate ump blowing an important call with a Brewers pitcher. Hodges absolutely robbed of a strike 3 looking in the 8th. Puts a man aboard instead. Two down. Man on 1st. Hawkeye data clearly showed that was a breaking ball belt high in the middle of the zone. Unbelievable. No matter, he gets the weakly hit groundout to Made. I am at odds with the professionals who call baseball games and who score them on a nightly basis. 😅

Switches over to the Shuckers to see Spain strikeout on another massive hack. LOL. Man he just really means it when he strikes out swinging.