The Brewers have restocked their system fairly quickly after deciding two years ago to turn the page on contending, a smart move given how quickly the Cubs became world champs and the strength of the Pirates’ and Cardinals’ organizations. Milwaukee has traded well and drafted exceptionally well, but the Brewers have perhaps not had the success on the development side that they should have, which is going to become increasingly important, given all the talent they’ve brought into the lower levels in the past eighteen months.
NL Central reports: Cubs | Reds | Brewers | Pirates | Cardinals
1. Corey Ray, OF (ranked No. 34)
2. Lewis Brinson, OF (ranked No. 38)
3. Isan Diaz, 2B (ranked No. 41)
4. Trent Clark, OF (ranked No. 67)
5. Lucas Erceg, 3B (ranked No. 70)
6. Josh Hader, LHP (ranked No. 71)
7. Luis Ortiz, RHP (ranked No. 79)
8. Brandon Woodruff, RHP (ranked No. 100)
9. Mauricio Dubon, SS
10. Brett Phillips, OF
Non-top-100 guys
Mauricio Dubon wasn’t far from the top 100. He’s a potential everyday player at a few positions, including shortstop, though Orlando Arcia’s presence might push Dubon to second or a super-utility role. Dubon can hit, run and field, and people with the Red Sox (from whom the Brewers acquired Dubon for Tyler Thornburg) rave about his work ethic. He’ll become the first player who grew up in Honduras to reach the majors.
Brett Phillips was a top-100 guy last year, and the tools -- speed, a plus-plus arm, raw power -- are all still there. But he struggled with his lack of a two-strike approach or willingness to adjust to pitchers’ counts, swinging hard regardless of the situation. There’s no lack of physical ability here, and if and when he calms down the approach, he has above-average regular upside.
Jorge Lopez (11) was also a top-100 guy before, but he struggled badly in the PCL last year, as the Brewers’ Triple-A affiliate is now in Colorado Springs, and he ended up going back down to Double-A to right the ship. He’s still throwing 91-94 mph and a power 12/6 curveball, and he flashed a hard changeup with split-like tumble last year. He might just need to skip Triple-A and break in as a swingman or long reliever in the majors.
Right-hander Marcos Diplan (12), acquired two years ago from Texas for Yovani Gallardo, made a strong full-season debut last year. His fastball sits mid-90s, complemented with an above-average changeup and chance for an average slider. He throws strikes, but like any 6-foot right-hander, he has to prove he can keep the ball down.
Big right-hander Cody Ponce (13), the team’s second-round pick in 2015, had mediocre results despite his good stuff in High-A, allowing way more contact than he should with his 92-95 mph heat and hard breaking ball. Puerto Rican catcher Mario Feliciano (14) is a bat-first guy with enough arm strength to catch but perhaps not the hands or agility. His bat will play at other positions, but he has a higher ceiling as an above-average regular if he can stay behind the plate.
Right-hander Devin Williams (15) continues to search for an average breaking pitch, with a fringy slider to go with his 92-95 mph fastball and grade-55 changeup. He has progressed very slowly, with his command and control where they should be, given his athleticism and experience.
Michael Reed (16) didn’t hit in Colorado Springs, which is bad enough, but he got out of his swing mechanics last spring and never recovered. Before then, I liked him as a potential fringe regular in center with high probability because he has always posted good OBPs and contact rates.
ShortstopGilbert Lara (17), the team’s bonus baby in the 2014 July 2 class, continued to underwhelm at the plate and in the field. He’s just 18 and has time to show something, but he’s getting thicker and might have to move off short, while scouts also questioned his effort the past two seasons. Ryan Cordell (18) has some power and can square up a fastball, but he lacks a position and just posted a .319 OBP in Double-A as a 24-year-old. He came over in the Lucroy trade.
The Brewers added right-hander Phil Bickford (19) in the Will Smith trade in July, shortly after Bickford -- who used to touch 98 mph -- threw just 90-91 mph in the Futures Game without an average second pitch. Nigerian-born Demi Orimoloye (20) hit only .205/.293/.324 as a 19-year-old in the Pioneer League, but he cut his strikeout rate while raising his walk rate from 2 to 9 percent. He has the hand strength to make hard contact and hit for power. He’s probably a six-year project, as there wasn’t much feel to hit when the Brewers drafted him out of a Canadian high school.
Others of note: Jon Perrin is a command/control right-hander taken as a senior out of Oklahoma State in the 27th round in 2015, and he has a chance as a back-end starter after a strong year in High-A Brevard County. … Nash Walters is a 6-foot-5 right-hander with a huge arm who walked 45 guys in 38⅔ innings last year as a 19-year-old. … The Brewers went over-slot in the 11th round on Phoenix-area prep third baseman Chad McClanahan, a power over hit guy right now who has physical projection and a plus arm. … I liked right-hander Trey Supak as an amateur, but he struggled with his mechanics and command after the Pirates took him, and they shipped him to Milwaukee last offseason in the deal that brought Keon Broxton to Milwaukee for Jason Rogers. Supak was better this past year -- not all the way back to what he was but worth watching in low-A Wisconsin’s rotation. … Nate Kirby, Milwaukee's second-round pick in 2015, should return this year from Tommy John surgery. As a starter, he will show an average fastball and flash an above-average slider and changeup, and he has some deception in his delivery.
2017 impact: Phillips or Reed could end up on the major league bench as the fourth outfielder. I’d really like to see the Brewers find a spot for Lopez so he doesn’t have to go back to Triple-A and those horrendous ballparks in the PCL’s western half. Either Hader or Woodruff, or both, could take a rotation spot sometime around midyear.
Sleeper: Even with his small stature and modest frame, Diplan isn’t far off from having three pitches and the command to project as a starter, with some sources even suggesting him for the very back of the this year’s top 100.
The fallen: The Brewers’ first three picks in the 2014 draft were lefty Kodi Medeiros, who struck out 64 and walked 63 in High-A last year with an ERA near 6.00; shortstop-turned-third baseman Jacob Gatewood, who posted a .268 OBP (17 unintentional walks and 141 K’s) as a low-A repeater; and outfielder Monte Harrison, who hit .221/.294/.337 and struck out in a third of his at-bats while also repeating low-A. The Brewers' 11th-rounder from that year is Woodruff, so it isn't all bad news.