4 Milwaukee Brewers ranked among Baseball America’s Top 20 Pacific Coast League Prospects

Two Milwaukee Brewers’ minor league teams were stacked with prospects up and down the roster: the Carolina Mudcats and the Colorado Springs Sky Sox. So it’s no surprise that between the two teams, nine of them made Baseball America Top 20 lists for each minor league division. The Mudcats prospects were featured in our post about the Southern League Top 20 a couple days ago. Today we turn our attention to the Sky Sox.

First on the list is Lewis Brinson (no duh) at number two. If you’re a Brewers fan, it’s likely you know a decent amount about Brinson. If you’re new to baseball, he’s Milwaukee’s top prospect, a five-tool outfielder who tore apart AAA while struggling some in a few major league at bats. BA points out that Brinson not only tore apart his competition, but he also improved in some key areas. His OPS was higher and he walked more and struck out less than ever before. Ever more reason to be excited about the Crew’s top prospect.

Next was one of the big club’s most promising role players, Josh Hader at number 11. Hader struggled mightily at AAA this season, but his stuff was undeniable so he got the call. A very interesting quote from the BA article comes from Hader’s AAA manager:

At 13 was current Brewers starter Brandon Woodruff. BA says the combination of his great movement and aggressiveness while pitching is what makes Woodruff a good pitcher. However, there is some concern with his control. Those control issues can be the difference between his dominant six-shutout innings starts and two-inning six-run starts.

Finally, Brett Phillips caps the entire list off at number 20. Phillips has strong power, good defense and one of the best arms you’ll see in the outfield. BA praises him for his increased maturity, although the 30% strikeout rate could keep him from becoming a key contributor.

The only top 30 prospect who didn’t make this list was Mauricio Dubon. Otherwise, it’s a great sign at how the top tier continues to stand out during the Crew’s rebuild.