Brewers: 4 Position Battles to Watch Throughout Spring Training

Spring Training is here, which means baseball is so close you can taste it. While there are some ideas as to who will be on the Opening Day Roster, as the Brewers take on the Twins April 1st, there is still plenty of roster spots left to be won.

Here are 4 battles to make sure to keep an eye on as Spring Training progresses.

Brewers Roster Battles: 5th Rotation Spot

Behind Corbin Burnes and Brandon Woodruff there are some questions in the rotation. It seems likely that Josh Lindblom and Adrian Houser will return. Even assuming Lindblom and Houser are starters, that leaves the fifth spot unsure. Last season, it was occupied by Brett Anderson, who was brought back on a one year.

Looking at the current makeup of the 40-man roster, besides Anderson, the two most likely pitchers to end up in the fifth spot of the rotation are Eric Lauer, and Freddy Peralta. Both of whom have made starts before in their careers.

Lauer is a lefty, who had an unfortunate season last year in his limited playing time. Lauer is able to avoid barrels and hopefully will be able to shake off last season and rebound in a strong way.

With Peralta, there is another level of intrigue. He is still only 24-years old, and has good stuff. He looked good last season, getting strikeouts and whiffs, while also avoiding hard hit balls.

As Spring Training starts, the Brewers have several position battles to keep an eye on. Among them: 3rd base, shortstop, the final rotation spot and bullpen spots.

Craig Counsell has never been afraid to explore unconventional methods of roster building and pitching usage (see: initial out-getter). It is possible that given Peralta’s struggles in the first inning, Counsell goes to some opener set up, or perhaps even a tandem where one pitcher goes for three, another goes for three, and then the bullpen shuts it down.

Even if Peralta or Lauer are not in the rotation at the start of the year, it appears a near certainty they will each make at least one spot start for the Brewers at some point, as blisters arise, teams go a long stretch without an off-day, lots of things come up where more than the five initial starters are called upon to make a start.

It is not out of the question that the Brewers made an addition late into the Spring, be it by trade, by signing, or a waiver pick up. However, unless that happens, or a non-roster invitee makes a splash, it appears Peralta, or Lauer will be chasing Brett Anderson for the fifth spot in the rotation.

Brewers Roster Battles: Bullpen Spots

The Brewers love their bullpen, and for good reason. They have relied heavily on it, and the bullpen has not disappointed. Craig Counsell has a knack for bringing out the best in relievers while they are here (Jordan Lyles, Drew Pomeranz), and don’t forget two of the most dominant relievers in the game: Josh Hader and Devin Williams.

But there are several players who are fighting for a bullpen spot. The Brewers have 11 pitchers in camp as non-roster invitees, and among those with the best shot of breaking camp with the team are Brad Boxberger and Blaine Hardy. Meanwhile, J.P. Feyereisen, Ray Black, and Bobby Wahl are three players who will also be battling for a bullpen spot.

Assuming the Brewers will carry an eight-man bullpen, there appears to be only one spot not accounted for. The Brewers have never been afraid of shuttling players back and forth, working to maximize usage of pitchers, and minimizing wear and tear on their arms.

Despite being a late signing, Boxberger appears to have the best chance to appear on the Opening Day roster. While you can never have too many left-handed arms, between Hader, Suter, and assuming Lauer is on the roster, it gets tougher to see a way for Hardy to make the team.

Feyereisen struggled in his small sample size this past season, and could make it back to Milwaukee at some point this season. Bobby Wahl only pitched 2.1 innings last season after coming back from a torn ACL, and could be a factor at some point this season. Ray Black has no options remaining, meaning if he does not make the Opening Day roster, he will be designated for assignment. Unfortunately for Black, that may be the fate coming, as he is on the outside looking in at this moment.

The Brewers rely heavily on the bullpen, and it has remained mostly the same from last season to this season, which will provide consistency, and continue to keep the team in games.

Brewers Roster Battles: Third Base

The Brewers missed out on Justin Turner, which blew up the plans for a big splurge in free agency, and made Spring Training more interesting, as there are multiple viable options the Brewers could go with to man the hot corner.

The Brewers signed Zach Green to a minor league contract this offseason, and then signed Daniel Robertson to a major league contract. Despite the positives that incumbent third baseman Urias has, he unfortunately does not have the power that is typically associated with the hot corner, and that is the biggest issue in handing the keys to the kingdom over to Urias.

The Brewers also have reportedly brought back Travis Shaw as a non-roster invitee. Given that Craig Counsell is a fan of people who can play multiple positions, and who hit left-handed, that could give Shaw a leg up in the battle for a roster spot.

Despite being the incumbent shortstop, Orlando Arcia has also been taking reps at third base, and Counsell has said he is open to using Arcia at third as well. The inclusion of Arcia into the contenders creates even more confusion right now. As it stands, Shaw is the only lefty in that group, which bodes well for him to make the roster, given the Brewers affinity for left-handed hitters, and Shaw has proven he can succeed in Milwaukee before.

Counsell is a fan of L/R matchups, and is quite open to platooning players. Between that, and the crop of players in Spring Training, it may very well be that no player will win the position outright, but instead on Opening Day we see a Urias/Shaw platoon, with Urias splitting time at third and shortstop. That may not be the most ideal setup, and it would be quite unconventional.

But unconventional is the way Craig Counsell manages.