Welcome back to the Minor League Roundup!
As a reminder, you can find this roundup — covering everything you need to know about each of the Brewers’ minor league affiliates — every Tuesday morning right here on Brew Crew Ball. For consistency, all organizational prospect rankings will reference MLB Pipeline unless otherwise noted.
Triple-A Nashville Sounds (35-22)
Opponent this week: Gwinnett Stripers (Atlanta Braves)
Luis Lara (No. 5): 9-for-20, 2 2B, 1 3B, 2 RBI, 3 BB, 3 KCooper Pratt (No. 4): 8-for-22, 1 3B, 1 RBI, 3 BB, 5 KJeferson Quero (No. 7): 4-for-16, 2 2B, 1 HR, 5 RBI, 3 BB, 4 KTyson Hardin (No. 17): 6 IP, 2 H, 0 ER, 1 BB, 5 KRobert Gasser (No. 15): 5 IP, 3 H, 1 ER, 0 BB, 6 KThomas Pannone: 6 IP, 4 H, 2 ER, 0 BB, 1 K
Luis Lara continues to do Luis Lara things. He has the Sounds’ Twitter page posting minute-long highlight videos. Enough said.
Cooper Pratt has also now (somewhat quietly) stacked a few good weeks in a row. Pratt is now hitting .267 with an .841 OPS over his last 86 at-bats. He has the fourth-highest qualified OPS on the Sounds, just one point below Jeferson Quero (.754).
Speaking of Quero, he hasn’t gotten as much coverage this year — possibly because despite reported improvements in his pop times, his stolen base rates aren’t all that much better than they were in 2025, his first year back from a serious labrum injury. Quero has caught 14-of-71 attempted base-stealers, or 19.7%. Last year, he caught 18.9% of base-stealers. Neither of those numbers are very good, especially for a prospect whose calling card was his throwing arm, and there’s not enough statistical improvement to point to a massive bounce-back like some had hoped.
What does give me hope for Quero is that he has continued to show that he could be a major league-level bat. In 2025, Quero slashed .255/.336/.412 (.748 OPS), and he’s at .250/.339/.415 (.754 OPS) this year.
Those are basically identical numbers over a sample size of just under 400 at-bats, numbers that suggest Quero is a major league hitter — especially at a position where the bar is a bit lower at the plate because of the added defensive responsibility. Quero may never be the prospect he was thought to be prior to the 2024 season, but he should be a contributor in some capacity in the majors, even if his arm means he’s more suited to be a high-end backup or platoon guy (.779 OPS against righties this year).
Jett Williams went 1-for-18 this week, but he still has a .731 OPS over the last month. Brock Wilken is now hitting .168 with two home runs all year. Akil Baddoo went 4-for-13 with three walks in five games.
Next week’s opponent: Jacksonville Jumbo Shrimp (Miami Marlins)
Double-A Biloxi Shuckers (25-23)
Opponent this week: Columbus Clingstones (Atlanta Braves)
Dylan O’Rae: 7-for-18, 0 RBI, 3 BB, 3 KMatthew Wood: 5-for-15, 1 2B, 3 RBI, 2 BB, 5 KJesús Made (No. 1): 4-for-12, 1 2B, 1 3B, 5 RBI, 1 BB, 1 KMike Boeve: 5-for-18, 5 RBI, 1 BB, 0 KEduardo Garcia: 4-for-16, 2 RBI, 2 BB, 7 KJaron DeBerry: 7 IP, 1 H, 0 ER, 2 BB, 4 KBishop Letson (No. 8): 5 1/3 IP, 2 H, 1 ER, 4 BB, 6 KBrett Wichrowski: 6 IP, 4 H, 3 ER, 4 BB, 5 K
As a few Shuckers approach 200 at-bats on the season, it’s worth noting how incredibly productive a few of the Brewers’ Double-A prospects have been through the first couple months of the season. Of the nine Shuckers to qualify for minor league awards (2.7 plate appearances per game), six of them — Darrien Miller, Damon Keith, Blake Burke, Matthew Wood, Dylan O’Rae, and Jesús Made — have an OPS above .800.
Made, the top prospect in baseball right now, is now hitting .280 with six home runs in 189 at-bats. He had more extra-base hits than strikeouts this week. Burke has also been excellent, posting an .844 OPS with 12 home runs on the season. The other four players aren’t as highly regarded, but each has at least one intriguing trait worth keeping an eye on. Keith, a 26-year-old outfielder acquired from the Dodgers this winter, and O’Rae, a former third-round pick who missed all of last season, have been particularly impressive.
Mike Boeve has also remained in the mix despite falling out of the Brewers’ top prospect rankings, slashing .259/.349/.371 on the season. He’s played more left field than any other position this year, which could indicate that the Brewers still view him as a player who can contribute at the major league level. With corner infielders like Blake Burke, Andrew Fischer, and Luke Adams ahead of him on the organizational depth chart, playing Boeve in the outfield creates another path to get his bat into the lineup.
Jaron DeBerry was absolutely incredible this week, pitching the 11th complete game (doubleheader, so only seven innings) shutout in Biloxi Shuckers history. This was the only hit he allowed:
DeBerry has gone seven in each of his last two starts while allowing a total of four hits and two runs. For those of you unfamiliar with the right-hander, this is what Eric Longenhagen of FanGraphs had to say about him before the season:
Bishop Letson and Brett Wichrowski also had great outings, although both allowed four walks in their starts.
Next week’s opponent: Montgomery Biscuits (Tampa Bay Rays)
High-A Wisconsin Timber Rattlers (26-22)
Opponent this week: Great Lakes Loons (Los Angeles Dodgers)
Eric Bitonti (No. 24): 8-for-19, 3 2B, 1 3B, 1 HR, 4 RBI, 2 BB, 5 KLuis Castillo: 7-for-21, 2 HR, 8 RBI, 3 BB, 6 KAndrew Fischer (No. 6): 5-for-18, 1 HR, 3 RBI, 8 BB, 10 KJosiah Ragsdale: 6-for-23, 1 2B, 1 RBI, 4 BB, 4 KJack Seppings: 4 1/3 IP, 3 H, 1 ER, 0 BB, 3 KJ.D. Thompson (No. 14): 4 IP, 4 H, 2 ER, 3 BB, 3 K
Eric Bitonti had what feels like his first true blow-up week of the season, hitting nearly .500 with a home run and five extra-base hits. Bitonti still struck out in five of the 11 plate appearances in which he didn’t record a hit, which tracks for a prospect who has struggled with an extremely high strikeout rate in the minors. Still, it’s nice to see him making hard contact and building some momentum.
Nothing new with Andrew Fischer. He’s still raking, and he’s still striking out at a high rate. Eight walks this week is nice to see, showing that his approach at the plate is developing, even if his bat-to-ball skills aren’t as much. Luis Castillo also had another good week, hitting .333 with two home runs and eight RBIs, as did Josiah Ragsdale, who’s become a mainstay in the column this year.
Josh Adamczewski only went 3-for-14 this week and struck out seven times, although he did work seven walks. He’s still hitting .319 over the last month. Nothing new to see here, either. Braylon Payne didn’t appear in a game this week but wasn’t placed on the IL.
J.D. Thompson pitched pretty well this week. His ERA (5.40) isn’t anything to be excited about, nor are his walk numbers (eight through 16 2/3 innings). With that being said, he’s only pitched 16 2/3 innings in professional baseball and is still striking out over a batter an inning. It’s hard to draw any conclusions on a player this early into their career. As he gets acclimated to the minor leagues, expect that ERA to drop significantly as he adjusts to facing professional hitters.
While Thompson and Jack Seppies stood out among the Timber Rattlers’ pitching staff, Ethan Dorchies (5 2/3 IP, 7 H, 5 ER, 1 BB, 2 K) did not. Dorchies was great last season between Rookie ball and Single-A but now has a 7.30 ERA through nine starts and 37 innings pitched. His walk rate isn’t high, and his strikeout numbers aren’t low; he’s just getting hit hard. Dorchies leads Wisconsin in hits allowed despite ranking fourth in innings pitched.
As concerning as those numbers are, Dorchies is still very young — he won’t turn 20 until after the season. His physical traits (a 6’5” frame, a reported seven feet of extension, and four pitches that could all become legitimate offerings) will earn him plenty of opportunities, but it would be encouraging to see him put together a few strong outings.
Finally, Luis Peña (No. 2) made his return to the lineup after a bit of a health scare in late April, going 3-for-14 with four walks and two strikeouts.
Next week’s opponent: Cedar Rapids Kernels (Minnesota Twins)
Single-A Wilson Warbirds (26-25)
Opponent this week: Delmarva Shorebirds (Baltimore Orioles)
Handelfry Encarnacion: 10-for-23, 2 2B, 1 3B, 7 RBI, 3 BB, 4 KBrady Ebel (No. 13): 7-for-21, 3 2B, 4 RBI, 9 BB, 7 KPedro Ibarguen: 4-for-14, 2 2B, 1 HR, 1 RBI, 3 BB, 3 KLuis Lameda: 5-for-18, 3 RBI, 4 BB, 6 KTyler Rodriguez: 3-for-11, 0 RBI, 4 BB, 3 KCarlos Carra: 5 IP, 1 H, 0 ER, 2 BB, 6 KTyler Renz: 8 IP, 6 H, 1 ER, 5 BB, 8 KEnderson Mercado: 5 IP, 2 H, 1 ER, 2 BB, 8 KAndrew Healy: 4 IP, 2 H, 1 ER, 2 BB, 3 K
Encarnacion and Ebel, the two best hitters on the Warbirds this week, have both been on a tear lately. Ebel owns a .989 OPS over the last month, a not-insignificant sample of 84 at-bats. He’s beginning to look like the first-round talent the Brewers considered him to be, and he’s doing it during what would have been his freshman year of college.
Encarnacion, who ranks second on the Warbirds with six home runs, is hitting .275 with an .874 OPS over the same span. He’s also one of the most entertaining players on the roster to watch, thanks to his tendency to absolutely demolish the ball.
Pedro Ibarguen, Luis Lameda, and Juan Ortuno have also been valuable contributors this year. Encarnacion and (especially) Ebel are certainly better prospects, but all three of those players are 20 years old or younger and have an OPS above .748. Ibarguen, who’s 19, is north of .900 over 100 at-bats.
Right-hander Tyler Renz pitched eight innings over two appearances this week, allowing just a single run on six hits while striking out eight. Carlos Carra went five shutout innings while allowing one hit, two walks, and striking out eight. Enderson Mercado also went five innings while giving up two hits, one run, and striking out eight.
There’s already a logjam of pitching talent at the major league and Triple-A levels, and then there’s promising guys like Letson, DeBerry, Thompson, Wichrowski, Bryce Meccage, Dorchies, etc. at the lower levels. Renz, Carra, and Mercado aren’t highly regarded prospects, or even known by your average minor league aficionado, but each of them dominated this week and each has had multiple quality performances this year. That speaks to the Brewers’ absurd organizational pitching depth.
Next week’s opponent: Salem RidgeYaks (Minnesota Twins)
Tyson Hardin, who was an every-week fixture in last year’s version of this column. After his breakout in 2025, the right-hander had gotten off to a rough start (7.67 ERA in seven starts) in Double-A, but Milwaukee decided to promote him anyway.
Since arriving in Triple-A, something has clicked. In his third start for the Sounds, Hardin tossed six shutout innings while striking out five. His K:BB ratio with Nashville now sits at 18:7, and he’s allowed just two runs in 18 2/3 innings. As the last few years have shown, there’s no such thing as too much pitching depth. If Hardin continues to pitch at this level, he will officially be on the major league radar.
Great play in center field by Eric Brown Jr., the Brewers’ first-round pick in 2022:
And an honorable mention, courtesy of Daniel Dickinson (team No. 28):
