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The moves executed by the Milwaukee Brewers leading up to this summer’s trade deadline ended up being more of a re-imagining of the 40-man roster by making a handful of trades to shore up the org’s MLB depth. But the team may yet be adding an impact bat to their active roster, though, although this transaction will involve a player who is already a member of the organization.
Breakout prospect Trent Grisham is expected to join the Milwaukee Brewers soon, sources tell ESPN. Grisham, a former first-round pick, played his way onto the Brewers with a standout season at Double-A and Triple-A. A big outfield bat, he is arguably the Brewers’ top prospect.
— Jeff Passan (@JeffPassan) July 31, 2019
Trent Grisham, 22, is in the midst of a phenomenal breakout season. The former 2015 first-round pick began the year with Double-A Biloxi and earned a berth on the Southern League All-Star team by hitting .254/.371/.504 with 13 home runs and 6 steals in 283 plate appearances, good for a 152 wRC+ on the pitcher-friendly circuit. He was promoted to Triple-A San Antonio midseason and has continued to rake, punishing PCL pitchers to an even greater extent than he did in Biloxi. In 34 games and 158 plate appearances for the San Antonio Missions, Grisham has hit a ridiculous .381/.471/.776 with another 13 homers and 6 steals. That translates to Yelich-like dominance equaling a 193 wRC+. Grisham, who has always had a strong understanding of the strike zone, has benefited greatly this season from a more aggressive approach and a transition to hitting more fly balls.
Grisham had nearly fallen off the prospect radar prior to this season, but he has now risen all the way up to #6 in the org’s most recent top prospect ranking according to MLB Pipeline (or, at least he will once Mauricio Dubon is officially removed from the list). The left-handed hitter can handle center field and right field when needed, but his best position is in left field. One possibility could be Ryan Braun beginning to see action at first base again now that Jesus Aguilar is no longer with the team.
UPDATE:
Manager Craig Counsell has confirmed that Grisham is, in fact, getting called up and will be in the lineup tomorrow. Braun will indeed begin to see some time at the cold corner once again.
With Jesus Aguilar traded, Ryan Braun expects to gradually re-acclimate to first base. How much he will actually play there behind Thames/Shaw depends on how those workouts go, and how Trent Grisham performs.
— Adam McCalvy (@AdamMcCalvy) July 31, 2019
Word in the clubhouse is that red-hot Grisham is indeed coming up.
Trent Grisham will be in the Brewers starting lineup tomorrow, Craig Counsell says.
— Adam McCalvy (@AdamMcCalvy) August 1, 2019
Statistics courtesy of Fangraphs