Brewers Minor League Roundup Week #15

Each week, I’ll be bringing you a roundup of the Brewers minor league affiliates, including score updates, key players and more. Here is the week 15 roundup.

AAA Nashville

The Sounds had a tough week against the Memphis Redbirds, going 2-4 across the six-game series to fall to 54-35 on the season. Both Columbus (51-38) and Memphis (50-40) closed the gap in the standings, down to 3 and 4.5 games back, respectively.

First baseman Tyler White and third baseman Pablo Reyes led the way offensively, as White slashed .333/.429/1.083 with three homers and six RBIs while Reyes slashed .400/.429/.550 with a team-high eight hits. Second baseman Mark Mathias also looked strong this week, slashing .316/.381/.526 with a home run of his own. The Sounds slashed .231/.319/.397 with nine homers and 21 runs scored, including a 10-run outburst on Sunday as they came back from down 8-1 to win 10-8.

On the mound, the Sounds had a tough week, but starter Marcus Walden was a bright spot as he went six innings and allowed one run on three hits and two walks to go with four strikeouts. Zack Brown and Trevor Kelley also looked good out of the bullpen, combining for 8 ⅓ innings over six appearances while allowing no runs, three hits and seven strikeouts. As a team, Nashville had a league-worst 7.20 ERA on the week, but they did manage to strike out 55 batters over 55 innings.

After a brief break to start this week, the Sounds will play a three-game series against the Louisville Bats this weekend. Louisville (36-53) sits in last place in the International League West standings, so the Sounds will look to rebuild their division lead. In their lone series this season, the Sounds went 5-1 against the Bats back in May.

AA Biloxi

The Shuckers had their third straight 2-4 week, losing four of six to the Tennessee Smokies (9-9) to fall to 6-12 three weeks into the second half of the season. Biloxi is now 5-7 against the Smokies this season.

Third baseman Andruw Monasterio had a solid week offensively, slashing .333/.448/.750 with three homers and five RBIs. In his return, outfielder Garrett Mitchell got back to hitting, slashing .455/.478/.682 with a homer and eight RBIs, while fellow top prospect Sal Frelick slashed .423/.464/.577 with a homer of his own. As a team, Biloxi looked solid offensively, slashing .248/.342/.401 with seven homers and 28 runs scored.

Starter TJ Shook had two strong starts on the week, combining for seven innings and allowing two earned runs on three hits and seven walks while striking out five. While no other starters had a strong performance, Carlos Luna looked great out of the bullpen, pitching a four-inning save allowing no runs on two hits and no walks with two strikeouts. Unfortunately, the Shuckers pitching staff fared similarly to the Sounds, finishing the week with a 5.44 ERA while striking out 48 across 48 innings.

Biloxi will return to action for a three-game set against the Pensacola Blue Wahoos (9-9) this weekend. A familiar opponent, Biloxi is 11-10 against the first-half division champions so far this year.

High-A Wisconsin

The Rattlers had a tough week against the West Michigan Whitecaps (16-5), losing five of six to fall to 12-9 in the second half, three games back of the South Bend Cubs (15-6).

Second baseman Jose Acosta led the way offensively this week, slashing .360/.407/.560 with nine hits. Outfielder Tristan Peters slashed .292/.370/.500 with a homer and seven hits of his own. The Rattlers didn’t have many standout performances on offense, leading to a .204/.296/.291 slash line with just two homers and 17 runs on the week.

Israel Puello had the strongest start on the mound, going seven innings while allowing just one run on one hit and three walks with five strikeouts. James Meeker also looked strong in a losing performance, going 6 ⅔ innings while allowing two runs on five hits and one walk to go with four strikeouts. Despite the 1-5 week, the Rattlers pitched to a respectable 3.17 ERA on the week, striking out 33 over 54 innings.

The Rattlers now welcome the Beloit Sky Carp for a three-game set this weekend. The Sky Carp (8-13) have struggled in the second half so far, including a current six-game losing streak. The Rattlers are 6-5 against Beloit this season.

A Carolina

The Mudcats finished at 3-3 this week against the Delmarva Shorebirds (8-13) to move to 9-12 and six games back of Fredericksburg (15-6) in the Carolina League North standings.

Catcher Jesus Chirinos slashed .267/.400/.667 with two homers and three RBIs on the week, while shortstop Eduardo Garcia slashed .389/.500/.556 with a homer and four RBIs. Across his only two games this week due to his participation in the MLB Futures Game, Jackson Chourio slashed .333/.333/.333 with three hits and one RBI. Carolina slashed .244/.333/.360 with five homers and 27 runs scored on the week.

Starter Stiven Cruz and reliever Jeison Pena had the strongest weeks on the mound. Cruz went six innings in his start, allowing no runs on four hits and one walk with eight strikeouts, while Pena went five innings across two relief appearances, allowing just one hit and one walk with four strikeouts. As a team, the Mudcats finished with a 4.67 ERA, striking out 60 over 54 innings.

The Mudcats will welcome the Down East Wood Ducks to Carolina this weekend for three games. Carolina is 10-10 against the Wood Ducks (12-8) this season, but they were swept in six games in their last matchup back in June.

Performances by Top 10 Brewers Prospects (Weekly Performance; Season Totals)

1. (MLB No. 38) OF Jackson Chourio (A): .333/.333/.333 (9 at-bats), 0 HR, 1 RBI; .321/.370/.591 (237 at-bats), 12 HR, 45 RBI
2. (MLB No. 49) OF Sal Frelick (AA): .423/.464/.577 (26 at-bats), 1 HR, 4 RBI; .309/.379/.445 (265 at-bats), 5 HR, 29 RBI
3. (MLB No. 63) OF Joey Wiemer (AA): .273/.429/.455 (11 at-bats), 0 HR, 0 RBI; .248/.327/.459 (307 at-bats), 15 HR, 45 RBI
4. OF Garrett Mitchell (AA): .455/.478/.682 (22 at-bats), 1 HR, 8 RBI; .248/.354/.383 (141 at-bats), 3 HR, 19 RBI
5. SS Brice Turang (AAA): .333/.409/.389 (18 at-bats), 0 HR, 2 RBI; .281/.342/.367 (335 at-bats), 4 HR, 39 RBI
6. C Jeferson Quero (A): .389/.429/.611 (18 at-bats), 0 HR, 4 RBI; .266/.337/.405 (259 at-bats), 6 HR, 37 RBI
7. 2B Tyler Black (High-A): No appearances; .281/.406/.424 (231 at-bats), 4 HR, 35 RBI
8. P Ethan Small (AAA): 5 IP, 4 H, 3 R (3 ER), 4 BB, 4 SO (5.40 ERA); 72 ⅔ IP, 50 H, 33 R (27 ER), 40 BB, 81 SO (3.34 ERA)
9. OF Hedbert Perez (A): .353/.389/.588 (17 at-bats), 1 HR, 3 RBI; .220/.274/.397 (277 at-bats), 11 HR, 38 RBI
10. SS Freddy Zamora (AA): On 7-day injured list (5/13); .209/.270/.286 (91 at-bats), 1 HR, 5 RBI