Well, he’s done it. Jackson Chourio is making his way to Nashville.
It was announced on Monday that the Milwaukee Brewers’ top prospect would be receiving a promotion to Class AAA for the final week of the minor-league season. Chourio is the youngest player at the AAA level, at 19.
Chourio has spent the season so far in Class AA with the Biloxi Shuckers, who ended their season on Sunday. Now, Chourio will hopefully get more playing time as he finishes out the season with the Nashville Sounds.
Jackson Chourio’s Breakout Season
In 2022, Chourio bounced between levels where he started in extended spring training and ended up finishing it out in Biloxi. However, his 2022 was incredible, and being only 18-years-old, he certainly was making a name for himself.
By the end of the 2022 season, Chourio was hitting .288 with 30 doubles, 20 homers, 75 driven in, and an OPS of .880.
All Eyes Are on Jackson Chourio
Going into 2023, fans were expecting to see him play how he did in 2022, if not better. He was the youngest player at the Double-A level, and many fans were hopeful to see him in a Brewers uniform by the end of the season.
Things were off to a bit of a slow start for Chourio, and by the end of June he was only hitting .253/.311/.410 with an OPS of .721, 10 homers, 13 doubles, and 47 driven in. Now, these aren’t terrible numbers when you look at them initially, but when you realize it’s Jackson Chourio hitting these numbers, these are below the standard of what we’re used to seeing out of him.
The second half of the season saw greater success for Chourio. In July, he played in 19 games where he slashed .388/.447/.718 with six homers, six doubles, two triples, and 20 driven in while stealing nine bags and scoring 24 runs. He also only struck out 10 times in that span.
The most notable stat from Chourio in the second half of the season has been his strikeout rate being cut to 14.3% compared to 26.9% in 2022.
Prior to this promotion, Chourio was slashing .280/.336/.467 with 22 homers and 42 stolen bags across 559 plate appearances for Biloxi. He is the first player in AA to have a 20/40 season since 2005 and the second teenager to have a 20/20 season since 2005.
“He’s definitely made some strides,” says Brewers Vice President of Player Operations Tom Flanagan said. “Now it’s going to be about continuing to do that because, like any player, he has a ways to go in some areas. It was an exciting year for him, for sure.”
Will Jackson Chourio Be in A Brewers Uniform in 2023?
If you recall last season, the Brewers promoted the trio of Garrett Mitchell, Sal Frelick, and Joey Weimer from Double-A to Triple-A right after the trade deadline. Then Mitchell saw some major league playing time in September of last year, Wiemer made his major league debut in April of this year, and Frelick in historical fashion in July of this year.
With the way Chourio is playing, you’d think it would be the time to call him up; Postseason is right around the corner, and the Brewers are looking to get that NL Central pennant. However, the Brewers outfield as it stands has a great group in Christian Yelich, Mark Canha, Tyrone Taylor, Sal Frelick, Joey Wiemer (Prior to being recalled to Triple-A), and Garrett Mitchell who can potentially make a return for the final week of the regular season. It’s very unlikely that we’ll get to see Chourio in the big leagues this season, but all signs are pointing towards him heading towards the major league come spring time of 2024.
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