Report: Brewers to call up catcher Jacob Nottingham

With Manny Pina leaving Thursday night’s game against the Chicago Cubs after taking a foul tip off his catcher’s mask with what the team called “head discomfort,” it seemed likely the team would need another catcher, even as just a precaution.

Enter catching prospect Jacob Nottingham, according to The Athletic:

This is the second time a Pina injury has led to a call-up for the young catcher this season. Nottingham had a brief cup of coffee in Milwaukee this May, appearing in 6 games and going 2-for-5, including hitting his first Major League home run and driving in 4 runs against Atlanta on May 17th.

The Brewers did already have David Freitas on the roster, but his defensive deficiencies led to him playing first base or DH more frequently at Triple-A, while Nottingham caught 66 games to Freitas’ 47 in San Antonio.

If the Brewers fall out of the playoff race after this weekend, it’s possible we could see Nottingham get more of a look behind the plate. With Yasmani Grandal expected to land a long-term deal elsewhere as a free agent this winter and the 24-year-old Nottingham already having spent close to two years at Triple-A (although only appearing in 133 games), the Brewers may want to assess if he should be part of their catching plans in 2020. Nottingham has two minor league options remaining after this year.

Statistics courtesy of Baseball-Reference