Author: Aaron Ahles

This article is part of a series looking at expectations for the Brewers position units in the 2023 season. Additional coverage is available on starting pitching, bullpen arms, and infielders. Ghosts of Outfielders Past The Brewers have featured a mostly stable slate of outfielders in the past few seasons, primarily comprised of Christian Yelich, Lorenzo Cain, and Ryan Braun. However, after the retirement of Braun in 2020 and the DFA of Cain after accruing 10 years of service time in 2022, those everyday outfield spots were left vacated. Braun’s spot was initially filled by Avisaíl Garcia before his departure from…

On Tuesday, March 21st, the entire world tuned in to the culmination of one of the most exciting entries into the tournament’s history. Fans were not disappointed as Team Japan beat Team USA by a score of 3-2 in an all-time classic of a gritty, dramatic game that will not soon be forgotten. Entering the game, media buzz was centered around two focal questions: would Team USA defend its title from 2017 in the last WBC, and what would it look like for Los Angeles Angels teammates Mike Trout (USA) and Shohei Ohtani (Japan) to play in a game against…

Which Outfielder Makes the Opening Day Roster? With the injury to Tyrone Taylor, the player that will fill his opening day roster spot in the outfield has been in question for a majority of spring training. Between spring training signing Tyler Naquin, 2020 4th round draft pick Joey Wiemer, and 20211st-round draft pick Sal Frelick, one of them will be in RF as an opening day outfielder. While some have doubted Naquin’s ability to prove useful on the big league roster, Wiemer’s cannon will be a defensive weapon for years in RF, and Frelick just had a very impressive offensive…

The Rise of Bally Sports In March 2019, a deal closed between The Walt Disney Company and 21st Century Fox saw the then Fox Sports Regionals fall under the House of Mouse. However, as a concession in the merger, Disney was forced by regulators to sell the regional sports networks (RSNs) due to concerns of monopolistic behavior. In May of the same year, Sinclair Broadcast Group acquired the rights to the RSNs and college athletics under the Fox Sports brand. As part of the terms of the deal, Sinclair had to rebrand the RSNs. This change took effect on March…

The 2022 Minor League Pitcher of the Year While the Brewers 2021 Draft Class was headlined by Sal Frelick, one of many promising Brewers outfield prospects, one fellow member of that draft class has already shown promise worth keeping an eye on. A 6th round draft pick, Carlos Rodriguez won Brewers 2022 Minor League Pitcher of the Year honors. Last year, across A and A+ levels, Carlos Rodriguez pitched to the tune of a 3.01 ERA in 26 appearances (20 starts). In 107.2 IP, he struck out 129 batters (a great K/9 of 10.83). In the second half of the…

Sal Frelick Keeps Hitting at the 2023 WBC Sal Frelick is getting invaluable playing time in the 2023 WBC having started in LF and CF while also hitting leadoff in Italy’s four games in the group stage. Italy’s 7-1 victory over Netherlands Sunday morning (CST) sent Team Cuba and Team Italy to the quarterfinals after all five teams in Group A finished 2-2 and those two teams advanced through the tie breaking formula. Frelick has been a hitting machine having recorded at least one base hit in each game, slashing a remarkable .389/.421/.556, and having zero strikeouts.  Let’s briefly break down…

Frelick and Team Italy Start Strong in 2023 WBC Sal Frelick was a hero in the early hours of Thursday morning (CST) as Team Italy defeated Team Cuba 6-3 in 10 innings. The Brewers #2 prospect played no small part in deciding the game, going 1-5 with a stolen base and scoring twice, including the go-ahead run in the 10th inning. Frelick’s speed and heads-up baserunning was on full display when it mattered most. Tied in the 10th inning, Italy teammate John Valente (Detroit Tigers organization) showed bunt. Frelick capitalized on the drawn-in infield and swiped 3rd base without a…

Brewers Participating in the 2023 WBC On Tuesday, March 7th, the world will come together for the first rendition of the WBC since 2017. While the WBC has historically been played on an every-four-year cycle since 2009, the 2021 rendition was postponed due to the global pandemic of COVID-19. Team USA will look to defend their title from 6 years ago, which featured current Brewers OF Christian Yelich, who was one of the key offensive players in Team USA’s path to victory. Yelich is not participating in the 2023 WBC, but a total of 13 players in the Brewers organization…

The Keys to the Future The Brewers have made a concerted effort over the past few years to invest in highly regarded outfield talent. That approach has resulted in each of their top 5 prospects (as of 2022) being outfielders in designation: Jackson Chourio, signing (Venezuela), 2021 Sal Frelick, 1st-round draft pick, 2021 Joey Wiemer, 4th-round draft pick, 2020 Brice Turang, 1st-round draft pick, 2018 Garrett Mitchell, 1st-round draft pick, 2020 Garrett Mitchell is the first of these outfielders to make his major league debut. Mitchell has already displayed significant promise, both in 2022 and in Saturday’s 2 HR effort…

Garrett Mitchell broke onto the scene with his first MLB start on August 28th, 2022 against the Chicago Cubs. He immediately made his presence felt, hitting a 2 RBI single to give the Brewers a 3-2 lead against the Cubs for his first big-league hit. The following day, he hit his first big-league home run against the Pirates, a clutch 2R HR to tie the game in the bottom of the 8th. The Brewers would walk-off as winners in the following inning (courtesy a 2R HR by Keston Hiura). The following weeks, however, were a different story. Between 8-30 and…