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As I mentioned in Monday's Mug, Baseball America has started releasing their lists of the top 20 prospects in each professional league for 2013. The Pioneer League list was released today and features three recent Brewer draftees: Outfielder Michael Ratterree, pitcher Barrett Astin and catcher Dustin Houle.
Ratterree, ranked #16, is a name many Brewer fans are probably familiar with at this point: He recently won the Pioneer League MVP award after hitting .314/.391/.585 with 12 home runs in 65 games. He was a tenth round pick in the 2013 draft as a college senior.
Astin, ranked #17, was the Brewers' third round pick in the 2013 draft. He pitched in 12 games for Helena this season (including eight starts) and posted a 4.30 ERA over 37.2 innings, walking 2.6 batters per nine innings and striking out 7.4. Astin also pitched 90.2 innings this season in college for Arkansas, posting a 1.79 ERA.
Houle, ranked #19, is still only 19 years old but was already playing in his second professional season behind the plate in 2013. He hit .250/.290/.311 in 46 games for Helena before moving up to Wisconsin and hitting .261/.370/.435 in seven games there.
These three players were part of a Helena team that came within a game of the Pioneer League championship. The Helena Brewers were the only Brewer affiliate to post a winning record this season.