Milwaukee Brewers Top 20 PRE-SEASON Prospects in Review

by John Sickels on Sep 6, 2025 10:00 AM EDT Comment 13 comments

Milwaukee Brewers 20 PRE-SEASON Prospects in Review

This list was originally published December 10, 2025. This is a review of the PRE-SEASON list for 2009, not a revision of that list. This is a REVIEW of the old list. I'm not doing new grades or lists until I start working on the 2010 book.

1) Mat Gamel, 3B, Grade B+: Hitting .277/.396/.482 for Triple-A Nashville, hit .239/.336/.407 in 48 games for the Brewers. Sharp season split, hit .336/.428/.647 in the first half, .224/.314/.336 in the second. This fast start/cold finish pattern is normal for him, though more extreme this year.

2) Alcides Escobar, SS, Grade B: Hit .298/.353/.409 with 42 steals in 52 attempts for Nashville, hitting .286/.327/.367 in 17 games for the Brewers. Progressing as expected.

3) Brett Lawrie, C, Grade B: Converted to second base. Hit .274/.348/.454 with 13 homers and 19 steals for Class A Wisconsin, promoted to Double-A where he's .269/.283/.308 in 13 games. Very young for Double-A.

4) Jeremy Jeffress, RHP, Grade B: Can't stay off the weed.

5) Jon Lucroy, C, Grade B: Hitting .273/.385/.428 for Double-A Huntsville, with 76 walks and 65 strikeouts in 407 at-bats. Love the plate discipline. Sharp home/road split. .912 OPS on the road, .694 at home.

6) Angel Salome, C, Grade B: Hitting .286/.334/.413 for Nashville, not duplicating stunning '08 numbers.

7) Lorenzo Cain, OF, Grade B-: Had injury problems, hitting .221/.280/.359 in 37 games for Huntsville, weak plate discipline an issue.

8) Jake Odorizzi, RHP, Grade B-: 3.57 ERA with 33/6 K/BB in 40 innings for rookie-level Helena in the Pioneer League. Sample is small but has performed OK.

9) Cutter Dykstra, OF, Grade C+: Hitting .240/.332/.331 with 11 steals in 13 attempts for Helena. Drawing walks, but not much pop.

10) Caleb Gindl, OF, Grade C+: Hitting .274/.363/.446 with 15 homers, 18 steals in 22 attempts for Class A Brevard County. Hampered by home park, and a breakthrough candidate for '10.

11) Cole Gillespie, OF, Grade C+: Traded to Arizona, hitting a combined .277/.373/.474 with 12 homers, 61 walks, 18 steals in 23 attempts between Brevard County, Nashville, and Triple-A Reno.

12) Wily Peralta, RHP, Grade C+: 3.38 ERA with 113/44 K/BB in 99 innings for Wisconsin, 84 hits allowed. Command needs work, but I love the strikeouts and the low hit rate.

13) Cody Scarpetta, RHP, Grade C+: 3.43 ERA with 116/55 K/BB in 105 innings for Wisconsin, 83 hits. Like Peralta, I like the Ks and the low hits, but needs sharper control as he moves forward.

14) Taylor Green, 3B, Grade C+: Hitting .261/.332/.361 for Huntsville. Contact hitter with good zone judgment, lacks power.

15) Omar Aguilar, RHP, Grade C+: Failed at Huntsville (7.71 ERA, 33/18 K/BB in 26 innings, 36 hits) but more effective back at Brevard County (2.28 ERA, 34/8 K/BB in 28 innings, 14 hits).

16) Alexandre Periard, RHP, Grade C+: Limited to just 37 innings between Wisconsin and Brevard County, 4.34 ERA with 23/16 K/BB, 41 hits combined. Not very exciting.

17) Josh Romanski, LHP, Grade C+: Hasn't played this year.

18) Evan Frederickson, LHP, Grade C: 5.30 ERA with 87/77 K/BB in 93 innings for Wisconsin. Very good stuff, but very poor control.

19) Erik Komatsu, OF, Grade C: Limited to just 79 at-bats, 66 at Wisconsin, by injury, hitting .253/.344/.316.

20) Efrain Nieves, LHP, Grade C: 5.70 ERA with 86/35 K/BB in 95 innings for Wisconsin, 116 hits. Not very attractive but he's just 19.

Gamel and Escobar can help in 2010 if they can find room for them. I don't buy Lawrie as a second baseman long term and I think they should just move him to the outfield and let him concentrate on his hitting. Jeffress drug problems are a sad case, but Peralta and Scarpetta look very interesting and 2008 supplemental pick Odorizzi has a ton of potential still. The 2009 draft looks intriguing on paper and will boost depth at the lower levels next year.

0 recs | Comment 13 comments | Share

Story-email Email Printer Print

Read More: Brett Lawrie (2B - MIL), Cody Scarpetta (P - MIL), Milwaukee Brewers

Comments

Zach Braddock

has came along really nicely as a reliever

Mourning Guy Carbonneau...
Royals obscure player to watch in ST: Lenny DiNardo

by playingwithfire on Sep 6, 2025 3:17 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs

Top Pitching Prospect

This question has been posed many times but really, who is the Brewers’ top pitching prospect? To me, it would probably come down to Braddock or Rogers, but I’m a whore for upside with actual proof of application, even if it comes with character or injury concerns (which is why Jeffress is still a top 3 pitcher in this org. to me).

Also, is it assumed now that Lucroy has passed Salome? Salome’s numbers from last year absolutely dwarf what Lucroy has done this year.

by ILuvDaBush on Sep 6, 2025 5:39 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs

Evan Anundsen

He has broken out in a huge way and may be the brewers top pitching prospect

Grab Some Pine Meat!

by Gobroks on Sep 7, 2025 10:50 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

Anundsen works in the mid-80s

He doesn’t have the projection to be a top prospect, but he could be a back-of-the-rotation guy if he finds a few more MPH.

It was a great selection of awesome.

by battlekow on Sep 8, 2025 10:45 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

Braddock

John, what kept him off the list last year? I’d have thought his performance, injury-shortened year or not, merited it. He’s been one of MILs best arms the last two years imo.

by blackoutyears on Sep 8, 2025 2:11 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

Gindl's already broken out

He’s leading the FSL in OPS; just because the context is so pitcher-friendly doesn’t mean he hasn’t broken out. The guy really missing from this conversation is Logan Schafer, hitting .311/.368/.446 while playing a quality center field for Brevard County. He could see Milwaukee late next year.

Also, Dykstra was moved back to second base, which is ostensibly why he was sent back to Helena, and he’s been making a ton of errors there. What a disaster of a season for him overall.

It was a great selection of awesome.

by battlekow on Sep 6, 2025 6:40 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs

Gindl v. Davis

Considering their similar statures and tools, who is the better prospect? One has a higher ceiling (and his signing bonus reflects that….and the fact that he’s represented by the Devil) while the other is more than holding his own in a High-A nightmare of a park. I would probably choose Davis, but that’s simply beause I think he possesses a better bat and more speed. But honestly, it really should be a coin flip.

And when it comes to Dykstra, I think this season is simply a lost cause considering all the turmoil regarding his father’s well-publicized legal problems on top of the position switch.

by ILuvDaBush on Sep 6, 2025 8:07 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

Who is Davis?!?!?

Brett Anderson is the Truth. Brett Anderson is divine presence. Brett Anderson is eternal life. Brett Anderson is within you. Brett Anderson is here. Brett Anderson is Now.

by Frederick0220 on Sep 7, 2025 6:09 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

Kentrail Davis

Supplemental first round pick of the Brewers this year. I guess I’d have to say that, despite their similarities in size, handedness, and age (Davis is two months older), Davis has the better tools and is the better prospect, though he’ll be probably be two levels behind Gindl when 2010 opens. From what I’ve heard, Davis isn’t much of a center fielder, but it sounds like the Brewers are going to give him the chance to play his way off the position, whereas Gindl is a right fielder almost for sure, albeit a hell of a good one and one that’s gotten occasional time in center the last couple years. It’s close.

It was a great selection of awesome.

by battlekow on Sep 7, 2025 6:54 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

Lawrie....top prep '08 draft pick?

I’ve had this conversation many times over the past 6 months but I have to think now it holds more credence than ever. His defense has been inconsistent, but he is leading off for AA Huntsville in his first professional season. He wasn’t even at his current position 9 months ago (and anyone wanting to diminish what a position change does to a young prep professional need look no further than the Dykstra example). He’s showing better than advertised speed and scouts rave about the contact and power he shows. Casey Kelly the Pitcher? Tim Beckham? I’ll still take Lawrie.

by ILuvDaBush on Sep 6, 2025 8:13 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs

Definitely top 3 or 4

Id still take Kelly (he was my pick on draft day 08). Brewers would have never been able to sign him, but he was the guy I wanted for them.

Kelly will be pitching in AA next year, and the Brewers need pitching. Lawrie is definitely putting up good offensive numbers and Im with JS in that I believe he is going to wind up in the OF. Not his fault, but he is the poster child for what is wrong with the 09 Brewers. The emphasis on offense and no pitching is killing them.

Any one of the pitchers drafted after Lawrie (college included), and up until they took Odirozzi) would have wound up helping the team in the end more that Lawrie will.

by backtocali on Sep 7, 2025 12:27 AM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

Lawrie - defense?

I’ve watched two USA/Canada exhibition games this weekend and Lawrie has been very unimpressive with his glove. The above poster said “inconsistent” - I like that phrase. He wasn’t exactly making errors, but he wasn’t making plays I thought he should have either. His bat however was nice - some good solid at-bats and hits. But certainly needs to take lots of ground balls.

by KSM on Sep 6, 2025 10:32 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs