Milwaukee Brewers: Top five candidates for September call-ups

As August winds down, the Milwaukee Brewers are still close to a playoff spot as we head to September. Rosters expand on September 1st and this team could still use some help for the run to the playoffs. The September call-ups will have more of an impact on this team than in the last two years.

While every team can add another 15 players to their active roster, no one ever adds that many. The Brewers generally don’t call up a lot of players, but this year could be different. With an emphasis placed on versatility and considering that most position players on this team can play multiple positions, there’s room for plenty of call-ups.

Throughout the summer, the Milwaukee Brewers have called up many of their top prospects for short stints. The only one who has stayed is Josh Hader. Lewis Brinson, Brett Phillips, and Brandon Woodruff have been up and down throughout the season. Players like that could see more action in September, but there are also a couple of guys called to make their Major League debut.

The Brewers reportedly expect to make two waves of September call-ups. One when rosters expand and one when the Minor League season is over about a week later. The Double-A and Triple-A squads in Biloxi and Colorado Springs are in playoff contention so it could be awhile before the second wave arrives.

Expect to see some familiar faces in September, but there will be a couple of unfamiliar ones to Brewers fans as well. Milwaukee Brewers manager Craig Counsell has said himself that they can’t just go .500 to finish out the year. They need to go on a run. These call-ups could provide enough of a boost to helpthe Brewers earn a playoff spot.

Honorable Mentions

There are a couple players that fans could be clamoring for the Milwaukee Brewers to call up, but it won’t happen. And these players are top 10 prospects as well ,but it seems unlikely that they will be in Miller Park in September.

Lewis Brinson

If Brinson was healthy he would be a surefire call-up. He’s the organization’s best prospect and he’s been hitting the crap out of the ball in Colorado Springs this year. He’s got a .331/.400/.562 line with 13 homers in Triple-A. Sadly, he suffered a hamstring strain earlier this month and was ruled out for 4-6 weeks.

The Brewers haven’t said that his injury was season ending, but it’s pretty close to it. Even if he returns after four weeks, there would only be about a week or so remaining in the regular season.

Let Brinson rest up, get healthy, and come back ready to take the starting center field job in Spring Training next year. Although we would like to see Brinson come back and contribute as soon as possible at Miller Park, the wise decision is to let him rest.

Mauricio Dubon

The Milwaukee Brewers already have three players who can play second-base on the roster in Neil Walker, Eric Sogard, and Jonathan Villar. They won’t bring up a fourth.

He’s lit it up this year in the Minors with a .275/.330/.381 line and 38 stolen bases. Mauricio Dubon recently earned a mid-season promotion to Triple-A. But with Walker on this roster now, there’s no reason to add Dubon, no matter how versatile he is.

Also, Dubon isn’t currently on the 40-man roster, so they would need to take someone off the roster in order to bring him up. There’s a chance he’s brought up as a pinch-running specialist, but it seems unlikely.

As the Brewers ninth-rated prospect, Dubon will get a good chance to make this roster next Spring Training. There’s simply no room for him at the keystone or shortstop. He can play center, but with so many center field options on the roster, there’s not enough space for him.

Paolo Espino

Paolo Espino has been up and down a few times this year and hasn’t had too much success at the big league level but still has performed in Triple-A. He was mostly used out of the bullpen in his most recent stint with the club.

He’s not a top candidate for a call up and he’s unlikely to make a difference if he is recalled. His odds of coming back up are probably at about 50-50. While the Brewers like him, he hasn’t done well at the Major League level.

The Milwaukee Brewers Opening Day starter will be back. In his five starts at Triple-A, Junior Guerra has a 2.45 ERA in 25 innings. His problem in Colorado Springs is walks. He has walked ten batters compared to only 16 strikeouts in those starts.

That probably won’t be enough to keep him away from Milwaukee in September, but it might be enough to keep him out of the rotation. With Brandon Woodruff scheduled to return to the rotation, Guerra won’t have a spot and will head to the bullpen.

The Brewers still believe in Guerra but his days as a starter may be over in Milwaukee. The only way he makes it back to Milwaukee’s rotation this year is if there is an injury to a current starter. 2016 was likely just lightning in a bottle for Guerra. He may never repeat that success but he can still be a useful pitcher in the Major Leagues.

Guerra was David Stearns’ first acquisition and he’s earned the right to prove himself to this team and he will get the opportunity. But don’t expect Guerra to become an ace anytime soon.

Ivan De Jesus is technically listed as a shortstop on the Colorado Springs roster, but he can play all over the infield, He’s been incredible at the plate this year in Triple-A, hitting .350/..411/.495 on the season with 27 doubles, seven home runs, and 61 RBIs. Those stats may look inflated because of the situation in Colorado Springs, but that’s not entirely the case.

De Jesus has hit everywhere he’s played in the Minor Leagues. He owns a career .303/.374/.404 line in about 1100 games. The 30 year old De Jesus has been around awhile. He was drafted in the same year as Ryan Braun, although with much less success.

He’s a career .242 hitter in the Major Leagues in 228 games with the Dodgers, Red Sox, and most recently, the Cincinnati Reds. Because of his versatility, the Milwaukee Brewers are likely to bring up De Jesus. He’ll provide another solid bat off the bench for manager Craig Counsell.

The problem with de Jesus is that he is not on the 40-man roster. In fact, the only infielder that’s on the 40-man who isn’t on the active roster is Yadiel Rivera. But Rivera still can’t hit at the Big League level or at the Triple-A level. De Jesus deserves the call instead. Rivera may have a good glove, but it’s not enough to get him a spot.

Well this is an easy one because Craig Counsell said that Brandon Woodruff will return in September. He is the fifth starter that the Milwaukee Brewers currently lack and won’t need until September 2nd. Conveniently, that’s one day after rosters expand. Perfect.

Woodruff pitched well in his three starts before Chase Anderson returned, going 1-1, with a 1.62 ERA over 16 and 2/3 innings. The Milwaukee Brewers like Woodruff a lot and it’s hard not to see why. He’s got the stuff and command to develop into a quality middle of the rotation arm.

The Brewers fourth rated prospect figures into the starting rotation for several years to come. Junior Guerra will likely be pushed out of the rotation when he returns because of the presence of Woodruff.

It doesn’t get more clear cut than this. When Craig Counsell and David Stearns say Woodruff will come up in September, that’s a pretty good indication that he’ll return in September.

Currently, the Milwaukee Brewers only have three true outfielders on their active roster. Hernan Perez and Eric Thames can play in the corners on occasion, but the Brewers need another true outfielder. That’s where Brett Phillips comes in.

Phillips has performed really well in the Major Leagues this year in his stints with the club and provides excellent defense. With Lewis Brinson injured, Phillips is the only other outfielder on the 40-man roster. Keon Broxton is on a hot streak right now, but what if it ends? Phillips is the only other healthy player that can man center field. He’s been productive at Triple-A and had started to heat up with Milwaukee before his demotion.

He’s been up with the club before and provides much needed depth in the outfield, making him an obvious choice for Craig Counsell. Phillips has 19 homers in Triple-A with a .311 average. He does strike out more than the Brewers would like, but it’s not an issue that cripples his chances of success in the Major Leagues.

Next: The Braun / Puig Deal That Never Happened

Generally speaking, the Milwaukee Brewers don’t tend to bring up guys just for the sake of bringing them up. They don’t generally bring up guys for their Major League debuts. They call up players who they’ve seen during the season for the most part. There may not be many new names for Brewers fans to see this September.