Brewers: Where Will Garrett Mitchell Play to Start 2021 Season?

Now that we’re almost a full month deep into MLB’s regular season, it’s time to also prepare for the start of the 2021 minor league season. In looking to that, many Brewers fans have one big question in the front of their minds.

Where is top prospect, outfielder Garrett Mitchell going to play?

Like everyone else who was drafted last year, Milwaukee’s first round pick from 2020 had the start of his pro career delayed due to the cancellation of last year’s minor league season. Thus, fans were still waiting to hear where he would begin his Brewers minor league career.

Add to that the fact that minor league’s reconfiguration makes it a little bit harder to project where certain prospects will end up playing in 2021 considering teams like the Rookie Advanced Rocky Mountain Vibes no longer exist.

Mitchell had a very strong Cactus League for the Brewers this spring, further raising fans’ expectations. But strong play in spring training doesn’t guarantee that a prospect still start off at a certain level.

So where will No. 1 Brewers prospect Garrett Mitchell Play to start the 2021 season?

With the start of the minor league season quickly closing in, it appears that we have our answer to that question. Mitchell will begin his pro career in the same state as the team that drafted him 20th overall last year.

It’s not every day you see any draft pick start his pro career at such a high level. 2019 first round pick Ethan Small began his career with the Brewers’ Arizona Rookie League team, as did 2018 first round pick Brice Turang. Even the highly regarded Keston Hiura started off at Arizona in 2017.

That should give you an idea of just how special of a player the Brewers believe Mitchell is. And they are correct to think so if his Cactus League performance this spring has anything to say about it.

Mitchell had a single in his very first appearance for the Brewers this spring and just kept going strong from there. When all was said and done, he ended Cactus League play with a .367 batting average and a .973 OPS. He also added a homer and a triple, three stolen bases, and struck out just seven times in 32 plate appearances. Not bad for a prospect in their pro debut.

Mitchell is the first potentially true five-tool player the Brewers have had as a prospect in years, so it makes sense that the expectations are high. Still, beginning a career at the High-A level is impressive no matter how you slice it.

Fans often have to wait years for a prospect to make their way to the big leagues to finally see them in person. For Brewers fans wanting to see Mitchell, it turns out they’ll just have to take a trip up the road to Appleton.