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Dating back to the beginning of 2015, the Milwaukee Brewers farm system has undergone an incredible transformation. Though the club didn't announce their rebuilding intentions until last summer, it can be argued that the trade of Yovani Gallado for three prospects was the beginning of the process of building towards the future of Brewers' baseball.
Since then the club has turned over nearly their entire roster, with Scooter Gennett and Ryan Braun remaining as the only offensive starters from even just last season. The flurry of trades and roster transformation undertaken by Doug Melvin and Slingin' David Stearns may not pay off at the big league level for another few years, but the duo earned a notch in their belt today as MLB Pipeline has ranked Milwaukee's farm system as the best in baseball following the 2016 MLB trade deadline.
From MLB.com's Jim Callis:
Thanks to a strong Draft and a commitment to rebuilding, the Brewers improved their farm system more than any other organization did from the beginning to the end of 2015...The additions of Bickford, Brinson and Ortiz, all former first-round picks, pushed Milwaukee's system from good to the best in baseball. Only the Astros can match the Brewers' total of eight Top 100 Prospects.
They have a nice balance of hitting and pitching talent, as well as depth at the top and bottom levels of the Minors...The Brewers, whose system placed ninth in MLBPipeline's preseason rankings, have amassed this talent in a variety of ways...The rebuilding process is far from over in Milwaukee, which will miss the playoffs for the fifth straight year, but there's definite cause to be optimistic about the future.
According to MLB Pipeline, here are the Brewers’ prospects ranked in the top-100 with their overall grades (on the 20-80 scale):
13. SS Orlando Arcia - MLB - 60
21. OF Lewis Brinson - AAA - 55
35. OF Corey Ray - A+ - 55
43. LHP Josh Hader - AAA - 55
63. RHP Luis Ortiz - AA - 55
65. RHP Phil Bickford - A+ - 55
74. OF Trent Clark - A- - 55
76. OF Brett Phillips - AA - 55
The future certainly looks bright for the Milwaukee Brewers and we’re getting a glimpse of it now as Orlando Arcia has been called up and figures to play everyday through the rest of the season. It’s quite an exciting time to be a Brewers’ fan, if you ask me.