Brewers Minor League Roundup Week #13

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 13 roundup.

AAA Nashville

The Sounds took four of six against the Indianapolis Indians (37-39) to improve to 47-30 on the season, holding a 1.5-game lead over Columbus (46-32) in the International League West standings.

In his lone game this week, second baseman Mark Mathias went 3-for-3 with three singles, while first baseman Jon Singleton slashed .500/.619/1.143 with two homers and 10 RBIs over 14 at-bats. Several other players had strong weeks, including outfielder Abraham Almonte (.333/.538/1.000 with two homers), third baseman Patrick Dorrian (.308/.357/.769 with one homer) and first baseman Tyler White (.300/.611/.400). As a team, Nashville slashed .286/.397/.464 with six homers and 44 runs scored.

Tyler Herb had the best week on the mound for the Sounds, pitching across nine innings and allowing no runs on 10 hits and one walk with nine strikeouts. Andy Otero also made a long-relief appearance, going 4 ⅓ innings and allowing no runs on four hits and one walk with three strikeouts. As a team, Nashville finished the week with a 4.00 ERA over 54 innings with 46 strikeouts. The Sounds currently sport the best team ERA in the league at 3.77.

The Sounds now travel to Columbus to take on the Clippers for six games in what will be a battle for first place. This is the first time Nashville plays Columbus this season.

AA Biloxi

In their first series of the second half of the season, the Shuckers lost four of six to the Mississippi Braves. After winning the first two games of the series, the Shuckers lost four straight, including a blowout 18-4 loss Saturday. With a 7-5 record against the Braves entering the week, the season series is now even at 9-9 for each team.

Third baseman Andruw Monasterio and catcher Jakson Reetz led the way offensively this week. Monasterio slashed .375/.423/.792 with three homers and five RBIs while Reetz slashed .273/.333/.818 with a team-high four homers and eight RBIs. Despite the strong individual performances, the Shuckers slashed just .223/.284/.406 with 10 homers and 24 runs scored as a team. It’s clear the team is missing Sal Frelick, who is still listed as day-to-day after injuring his hamstring on June 21.

Brandon Knarr and Carlos Luna were the lone bright spots on the mound this week. Knarr went six innings in his only start, allowing two runs on four hits and two walks with seven strikeouts. Luna made two relief appearances for a total of eight innings, allowing three runs on nine hits and two walks while striking out 12. As a team, the Shuckers finished with a league-worst 6.83 ERA, although that number is ballooned thanks to the Braves’ 18-run output on Saturday.

The Shuckers now travel to Montgomery to take on the Biscuits (4-2) this week. Biloxi is 4-6 against the Biscuits this season, including a four-game sweep at the end of May.

High-A Wisconsin

The Rattlers stayed hot this week, winning five of six against the Cedar Rapids Kernels (2-7) to move to 8-1 on the season and into a tie for first place with the South Bend Cubs (8-1) in the Midwest League West standings.

Catcher Darrien Miller led the way for Wisconsin, slashing .389/.455/.722 with two homers and eight RBIs, while third baseman Ashton McGee slashed .300/.391/.650 with two homers and seven RBIs of his own. Second base prospect Tyler Black also stayed hot, slashing .333/.429/.417 with three RBIs over a team-high 24 at-bats. As a team, the Rattlers slashed .273/.360/.412 with six homers and 31 runs scored.

The Rattlers were anchored by three strong starts on the mound. Russell Smith (6 IP, 1 ER, 3 H, 0 BB, 6 SO), Justin Jarvis (5 IP, 1 ER, 1 H, 3 BB, 10 SO) and Israel Puello (5 IP, 1 ER, 3 H, 1 BB, 7 SO) all dazzled on the mound as the Rattlers won all three games. As a team, Wisconsin finished the week with a 4.33 ERA with 63 strikeouts over 54 innings.

Much like the Sounds, the Rattlers will take on another top team this week as they travel to South Bend to battle the Cubs for first place in the standings. In their lone series this season back in May, the two clubs each won three games.

A Carolina

The Mudcats had a strong week after going 0-6 last week, winning five of six against the Fayetteville Woodpeckers (2-7) to move to 5-4 and three games back from first in the Carolina League North standings.

Catcher Jeferson Quero led the way this week, slashing .444/.545/.611 with one homer and two RBIs. Shortstop Eduardo Garcia slashed .278/.409/.389 with two RBIs of his own. As a team, the Mudcats slashed .227/.320/.330 with three homers and 28 runs scored. They also improved on their 2.95 K/BB ratio from last week, striking out 50 times and walking 28 times for a 1.79 K/BB ratio.

Stiven Cruz had a strong start on the mound for Carolina, going six innings and allowing no runs on three hits with five strikeouts. Fernando Olguin and Miguel Segura also had nearly identical starting lines, as each went five innings and allowed one run on two hits. Olguin finished with six strikeouts while Segura had five of his own. As a team, Carolina finished the week with a 3.38 ERA and 72 strikeouts over 56 innings.

The Mudcats will try to stay hot on the road against the Kannapolis Cannon Ballers (6-3) this week. In their only other series back in May, Carolina won five of six at home.

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

1. OF Sal Frelick (AA): Did not play (injured 6/21); .291/.367/.436 (220 at-bats), 4 HR, 22 RBI
2. OF Joey Wiemer (AA): .050/.174/.050 (20 at-bats), 0 HR, 0 RBI; .257/.339/.489 (268 at-bats), 15 HR, 45 RBI
3. OF Garrett Mitchell (AA): On 7-day injured list (5/14); .224/.331/.346 (107 at-bats), 2 HR, 11 RBI
4. SS Brice Turang (AAA): .227/.414/.273 (22 at-bats), 0 HR, 4 RBI; .276/.337/.348 (293 at-bats), 3 HR, 33 RBI
5. C Jeferson Quero (A): .444/.545/.611 (18 at-bats), 1 HR, 2 RBI; .267/.344/.412 (221 at-bats), 6 HR, 32 RBI
6. 2B Tyler Black (High-A): .333/.429/.417 (24 at-bats), 0 HR, 3 RBI; .296/.409/.451 (213 at-bats), 4 HR, 34 RBI
7. P Ethan Small (AAA): 6 IP, 6 H, 3 R (3 ER), 0 BB, 1 SO (4.50 ERA); 62 ⅔ IP, 44 H, 29 R (23 ER), 32 BB, 69 SO (3.30 ERA)
8. OF Hedbert Perez (A): .105/.227/.158 (19 at-bats), 0 HR, 1 RBI; .211/.264/.393 (242 at-bats), 10 HR, 33 RBI
9. OF Jackson Chourio (A): .192/.192/.462 (26 at-bats), 1 HR, 2 RBI; .319/.366/.580 (207 at-bats), 9 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