Poll: Milwaukee Brewers Minor League Pitcher of the Year

The season is now officially over for all seven of the Milwaukee Brewers’ minor league affiliates, so it’s time to reflect upon which hurlers deserve to be recognized for their outstanding work on the mound this year. Below are a few of the top performing pitchers from the Brewers’ farm system. Who deserves to be named Brew Crew Ball’s 2016 Minor League Pitcher of the Year?

RHP Brandon Woodruff
Age: 23
High-A Brevard County Manatees / AA Biloxi Shuckers

Woodruff was an 11th round pick in the 2014 draft and broke out in a big way this year, finally matching his big tools to a stellar performance. He lead all minor league pitchers in strikeouts and greatly improved his prospect stock. Woodruff could force himself into the big league starting rotation conversation as soon as next season.

158.0 IP || 2.68 ERA || 2.50 FIP || 173 K || 40 BB || 6 HR || 1.019 WHIP

RHP Jon Perrin
Age: 23
Low-A Wisconsin Timber Rattlers / High-A Brevard County Manatees / AA Biloxi Shuckers

Perrin really came out of nowhere to enjoy a fantastic season in 2016, just a year after being drafted in the 27th round out of Oklahoma State in the 2015 MLB Draft. Jon hardly walked anyone all season and used his pinpoint control of a low-90s fastball and two offspeed pitches to generate plenty of strikeouts across three minor league levels. He looks like he’s got a good chance to play in the big leagues, if he doesn’t retire to attend law school first.

150.0 IP || 3.06 ERA || 2.47 FIP || 144 K || 23 BB || 6 HR || 1.133 WHIP

LHP Josh Hader
Age: 22
AA Biloxi Shuckers / AAA Colorado Springs Sky Sox

Of all the pitching prospects in baseball one could argue that Hader has raised his stock the most in the last year and a half, pretty much since being dealt from Houston to Milwaukee in 2015. He began this year by dominating in AA and though he didn’t prevent runs at the same rate in AAA, he still missed a ton of bats.

126.0 IP || 3.29 ERA || 3.06 FIP || 161 K || 55 BB || 6 HR || 1.238 WHIP

RHP Marcos Diplan
Age: 19
Low-A Wisconsin Timber Rattlers / High-A Brevard County Manatees

Diplan came to the Brewers as the lottery ticket in the Yovani Gallardo trade with Texas, and thus far it looks like Doug Melvin might’ve bought a winner. Diplan opened some eyes this season with his performance in the Midwest League before being promoted to high-A, not a place that many 19 year olds find themselves in.

113.1 IP || 3.02 ERA || 3.24 FIP || 129 K || 50 BB || 7 HR || 1.288 WHIP

LHP Brent Suter
Age: 26
AAA Colorado Springs Sky Sox / MLB Milwaukee Brewers

Suter, a Harvard graduate, was a 31st round draft pick back in 2012 and has ascended his way through the minors since. He spent most of this season in pitching hell in Colorado Springs, yet his run prevention was exceptional considering the offensive environment of his home park and the PCL on the whole. The soft-tossing lefty even earned a promotion to the big leagues, where he’s baffled hitters in a relief role using his 83 MPH fastball and quick pace on the mound.

110.2 IP || 3.50 ERA || 3.42 FIP || 75 K || 14 BB || 5 HR || 1.292 WHIP

Statistics courtesy of Fangraphs

Vote: 2016 Brewers Minor League Player of the Year