Brewers Farm Update

Brewers Farm Update: Tuesday, July 14

Colorado Springs Sky Sox: (34-54), 22.0 GB

All-Star Break.

Biloxi Shuckers: (9-9), 2.0 GB

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 R H E
Biloxi 0 2 0 0 4 2 0 0 1 9 13 1
Tennessee 0 0 1 0 0 1 0 0 0 2 6 0

RHP Jorge Lopez:  (W, 8-3) 5.2 IP, 6 H, 2 ER, 2 BB, 4 K — 2.58 ERA
LHP Mike Strong:  2.1 IP, 0 H, 0 ER, 1 BB, 4 K — 2.79 ERA
2B Nathan Orf:  3-for-5, 2 2B, RBI, 2 R — .270 AVG
LF Victor Roache:  2-for-3, RBI, 2 BB, SB (1), 2 R — .215 AVG

Brevard County Manatees: (7-11), 6.5 GB

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 R H E
Brevard County 0 0 0 1 2 0 0 0 0 3 7 4
Charlotte 1 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 2 7 0

RHP Jorge Ortega:  (W, 8-5) 8.0 IP, 7 H, 2 R (1 ER), 0 BB, 5 K — 2.16 ERA
RHP Kaleb Earls:  (S, 4) 1.0 IP, 0 H, 0 ER, 0 BB, 1 K — 3.44 ERA
2B Chris McFarland:  2-for-4, HR (3), RBI, R, K — .285 AVG
1B Garrett Cooper:  2-for-4, HR (3), RBI, R — .272 AVG

Wisconsin Timber Rattlers: (6-12), 9.5 GB

Game postponed due to rain.

Helena Brewers: (10-12), 3.5 GB

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 R H E
Helena 1 1 0 1 0 5 0 0 0 8 16 1
Orem 0 0 3 0 0 0 0 1 1 5 8 3

LHP David Carver:  (W, 1-0) 6.0 IP, 6 H, 3 ER, 0 BB, 4 K — 5.91 ERA
RHP Joshua Torres:  2.0 IP, 2 H, 1 ER, 0 BB, 0 K — 5.00 ERA
CF Monte Harrison:  2-for-5, HR (3), RBI, SB (8), 2 R — .274 AVG
SS Jake Gatewood:  1-for-5, HR (2), RBI, 2 R, K — .236 AVG
RF Carlos Belonis:  2-for-3, 3B, RBI, BB, SB (7), R — .239 AVG

AZL Brewers: (8-11), 2.0 GB

Did not play.

DSL Brewers: (17-21), 9.0 GB

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 R H E
DSL Red Sox2 1 3 0 0 0 1 1 0 0 6 12 0
DSL Brewers 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 4 0

RHP Nattino Diplan:  (L, 1-4) 6.0 IP, 10 H, 5 ER, 2 BB, 5 K — 4.50 ERA
RHP Juan Diaz:  2.0 IP, 1 H, 0 ER, 0 BB, 2 K — 6.00 ERA
3B Yerison Pena:  2-for-3, 2B, BB, K — .388 AVG
DH Javier Castillo:  1-for-2, BB, K — .279 AVG

Prospect of the Day:  OF Monte Harrison, Helena

At only 19 years of age, the organization expected Harrison to encounter significant speed bumps after an aggressive promotion to Class-A Wisconsin. They, of course, didn’t expect the former second-rounder to hit .148/.246/.247 in 46 games, but I suspect the plan was always to challenge him with an aggressive early-season assignment with the likely option of moving him back to Helena in June. It’s precisely what the organization did with Clint Coulter two years ago.

If some questioned the wisdom of such a developmental plan earlier in the season — and I did before discussing the decision with a couple scouts — they’ve gone quiet during Harrison’s massive turnaround at the plate. He was hitting .327/.406/.527 with six stolen bases over his last 16 games prior to Monday night’s victory over Orem. Harrison added another two hits, including a first-pitch homer in the first inning, to that impressive stretch of form. His strikeout rate has dropped to 21.0 percent and he’s once again driving the baseball.

Just another example of why scouting the box scores is so difficult. The Brewers felt Harrison and Gatewood needed to be pushed this spring to keep them engaged in their developmental process. At 19 years old, neither of them were ready, and that showed in their numbers with the Timber Rattlers. However, one wonders if that aggressive approach in April and May is now playing dividends for Harrison, as he’s starting to rake. He’ll return to Class-A Wisconsin in 2016. For now, though, he’s tearing up the Pioneer League and returning some of the luster to his stock as a prospect.

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