The season is almost over, and instead of contending for a playoff spot, the Brewers are striving to avoid losing 100 games. It can be hard to continue following the team daily during these hard times. However, intriguing things remain that can hold the interest of the dedicated fan.
In two weeks September will arrive and rosters will expand from 25 to 40. More than anything, teams will take advantage of the expanded rosters to call up extra relievers and bench players to help keep their main guys fresh. As the Brewers are well out of the postseason hunt, an additional goal in giving players a September call-up will be to evaluate their potential and/or their major-league readiness for the 2016 season.
Not every player the Brewers call up in September is going to be a future star or a future regular. But the chances are pretty good that at least one of the players will become a regular contributor for the Crew at some point in the near future. We can see evidence of this in the five previous September call-up classes.
2010
RHP Mark Rogers, INF Luis Cruz, RHP Brandon Kintzler, RHP Jeremy Jeffress, RHP Carlos Villanueva
2011
RHP Mike Fiers, RHP Tim Dillard, C Martin Maldonado, OF Logan Schafer
2012
2B Eric Farris, RHP Brandon Kintzler, RHP Josh Stinson, OF Logan Schafer, RHP Tyler Thornburg, RHP Wily Peralta, 3B Taylor Green
2013
RHP Donovan Hand, RHP Jimmy Nelson, RHP Johnny Hellweg, 1B Sean Halton
2014
OF Logan Schafer, 1B Matt Clark, 1B Jason Rogers, SS Hector Gomez, RHP Rob Wooten
The players in bold have gone on to contribute to a major-league roster in some capacity for multiple years. Six of these players are currently on the Brewers’ active roster — seven, if you count Jason Rogers. Right-hander Mike Fiers would make it eight, but he was recently traded to the Astros. Soft-tosser Carlos Villaneuva is a guy who had contributed in the past for the Brewers and is still playing in the majors today (Cardinals).
The upcoming class of September call-ups should be interesting. Looking at the current state of the 40-man roster provides us a good idea of who we’ll see get a promotion. OF Domingo Santana, SS Luis Sardinas, 3B Matt Dominguez, 1B Matt Clark, SS Yadiel Rivera, C Juan Centeno, RHP Preston Guilmet, and LHP Mike Strong are all currently at Triple-A Colorado Springs. Most of them have spent some time at the major-league level. Only Rivera and Strong have yet to make their appearance in The Show.
It wouldn’t be surprising to see any of these players receive a September promotion. Of the group listed, Santana is the only one that has significant upside, though several players seem to offer the possibility of spending multiple years with the Brewers as role players. Of course, players on the 40-man roster aren’t the only options.
Nearly every year the Brewers have given a promotion to a player who wasn’t on the 40-man roster prior to September. They currently have three open roster spots. It seems unlikely they would use each spot right now, but it seems probable that they’ll use one spot on recently acquired pitcher Zach Davies.
The Brewers acquired Davies from the Baltimore Orioles in exchange for Gerardo Parra. He has spent the season at the Triple-A level and has comported himself nicely. In 111.1 IP he has a 7.4 K/9, 3.2 BB/9, 1.29 WHIP, and a 3.07 ERA. I assume the Brewers acquired him with the intention of affording him every opportunity to win a spot in the major-league rotation, perhaps as soon as the 2016 season.
Davies will also need to be placed on the 40-man roster before next year to protect him from the Rule 5 draft. Thus, putting him on the 40-man roster in September wouldn’t be premature, as it won’t force the Brewers to burn a minor-league option earlier than they would otherwise. Since he won’t be sent down after his call-up, they’d only use a minor-league option if they send him to the minors next season, which is a decision they’ll have to make regardless of what they do with him in September.
There are other players that could receive September call-ups, but I believe Zach Davies and Domingo Santana are the most exciting. Although, it should be noted that when Mike Fiers was given his promotion in 2011, I don’t think anyone expected him to have the success he has enjoyed. At different points in their minor-league careers Luis Sardinas and Matt Dominguez were highly regarded. The same could be said about the rehabbing Johnny Hellweg who is out of minor-league options after this season. In baseball, after all, you never know when someone will surprise you.
What about Brett Phillips?