Brewers News: Surprises And Omissions From 45 Man Roster Pool

The Milwaukee Brewers have announced their initial 45 man player pool that will work out at Miller Park.

Finally! A day after the Brewers had to submit their list of players for their initial player pool for the 2020 season, they have finally made that list known to the public.

While the Brewers could’ve put up to 60 players on that list, they have only named 45 players to start with.

The Crew already announced that Tyrone Taylor would be assigned to the satellite camp in Appleton at the Low-A Timber Rattlers facility. The remaining players that will be on the 60 man roster but didn’t make the 45 man cut will be in Appleton.

Let’s dig into this roster.

Surprise Additions

There isn’t much in the way of total surprises among this group. Zack Brown was one of the Brewers top pitching prospects entering last year, but he struggled mightily and his stock has fallen significantly. However, he was still at the Triple-A level and was looking a little better in spring training this year.

He’s not likely to make the 30 man roster when the season starts, but he is in a position to help out in the bullpen if needed at some point.

Keon Broxton has some familiarity with the Crew, but his well documented contact issues have continued. After bouncing around the league last year, the speedy outfielder signed back with the Brewers, but struggled in spring training, hitting just .120 (3-for-25) with 11 strikeouts. Broxton is solid defensive depth and can fill in for a short amount of time if needed, but the Brewers have plenty of others who could fill that spot just fine and with some offense that can come with it.

Notable Omissions

Since the Brewers limited the number of players they announced, it was more likely to have some omissions to talk about. Four players who are on the 40 man roster did not make the 45 player cut to work out at Miller Park. Those four players are Tyrone Taylor, Corey Ray, Trey Supak, and Angel Perdomo.

During the first spring training, Perdomo was impressing Brewers coaches and was pushing himself close to a bullpen spot to open the season, but that doesn’t look like it’ll be the case.

Supak was having a great 2019 season for Double-A Biloxi, dominating his was to a 2.20 ERA in 20 starts. Then he got promoted to Triple-A and everything fell apart. In seven starts, Supak had a 9.30 ERA for the San Antonio Missions and his strong chances of being a September call up last year fizzled away. He did have three scoreless innings in spring training, though.

Tyrone Taylor and Corey Ray are on the outside looking in in a crowded outfield picture. Taylor earned a call up late last year but has struggled to provide consistent offense through his eight years in the minors and Ray, the Crew’s first round pick in 2016 (5th overall) has struggled to stay healthy. Ray also hit just .050 (1-for-20) in the spring.

The Brewers also did not put many top prospects on this list of 45 players. Drew Rasmussen was expected to be on the list because of his proximity to the majors and help out the bullpen at some point this year.

Other top prospects, such as Brice Turang, Ethan Small, Mario Feliciano, and Aaron Ashby did not make the list. None are expected to provide immediate help in 2020, but the development time for them will be crucial. There are still 14 spots in Appleton that haven’t been spoken for and there’s a strong chance that those players are able to grab a spot.

Another player that could make the list but hasn’t yet is first round pick Garrett Mitchell. He hasn’t signed his contract yet, so they can’t put him on the roster, but once he does, the Brewers could put him in Appleton to start his development.

The final group of players will be announced at a later date and the camp in Appleton will open at a later date. The Miller Park group begins work on July 1st, and the season will start on July 23rd or 24th.