Brewers: 3 Prospects To Keep An Eye On In Arizona Complex League

June 28th is Opening Day…for the Arizona Complex League! The Brewers two Rookie-level teams start play today in the only remaining state-side short season level in affiliated pro ball.

Some of the youngest Brewers prospects in the system have been playing down in Arizona at American Family Fields of Phoenix over the last few weeks in “extended spring training” games. The players there will be split up into Brewers Gold and Brewers Blue teams and several more prospects will be sent to the Dominican Summer League, which will start on July 12th.

Today, the Arizona League begins, and although it’s far away from the major leagues, there are some big Brewers prospects fans should keep an eye on.

1. OF Hedbert Perez

The top Brewers prospect in Rookie ball, Hedbert Perez has been continuing to trend upward since signing with the Crew in 2019. His rise in prospect status has all happened without him playing in a single official game.

Finally, that will change.

We’ve heard so many great things about Perez and we’ve seen his smooth swing from the left side.

Now we’ll get to see him in real game action. We’ll have stats that we can point to and realize how good he actually is and how ready he might be for the next level.

Perez is just 18 years old, but he’s a pretty advanced player and his character and makeup make him a strong bet to move relatively quickly through the system, provided he produces like expected. Perez is the Crew’s No. 3 overall prospect on MLB Pipeline.

2. SS Eduardo Garcia

One of the Crew’s top 2018 international signees, Eduardo Garcia has only played in 10 official games as professional. He played in the Dominican Summer League in 2019 but broke his ankle early in the season and missed the rest of the year.

Those 10 games showed a lot of promise, as he hit .313/.450/.469 with 10 hits, three for extra bases including a home run, six walks, and one stolen base.

Garcia is a very strong defender and will be able to stick at shortstop with his skillset, but there’s a chance as he continues to add strength and fill out his 6’2″ frame that he could size out of the position. If he does, there’s a chance he could have enough power in his bat to be a good third baseman.

With Garcia’s strong offensive skills gives him a very high ceiling, especially if he can stick at shortstop. He’s most recently listed at 160 pounds, but perhaps he’s added some muscle over the last year or two. He’s a Top 10 Brewers prospect and Garcia has a bright future ahead of him now that he’s past the ankle injury.

With an extended, healthy look at Garcia in Arizona, he could also rise up some rankings and perhaps earn a promotion.

3. C Jeferson Quero

One of the surprising stars of Instructional League last fall, Jeferson Quero opened many eyes in the Brewers organization with his offensive prowess, strong defensive skillset, and ability to manage a pitching staff and be a leader in the clubhouse.

Both Quero’s tangible and intangible skills together make him an intriguing prospect to watch. Although he’s not one that many think about right now, that can change quickly, especially as we see statistics from him. We also haven’t seen any official games from Quero yet.

While many think of Mario Feliciano as the Brewers catcher of the future, and he’s certainly closer than Quero, Quero might end up having a higher ceiling than Feliciano and have a future role with the big league club.

Quero is still many years away, as young catchers typically take a while to develop, but with the reports of his defensive skills being so advanced already at 18 years old, perhaps it won’t take as long as it would other catchers.

These three hitting prospects are some of the top prospects in the Brewers system, and MLB Pipeline has all three in the Top 10. There are plenty of other exciting prospects on the Arizona Brewers rosters to keep an eye on, but these three are key and could very well be key members of the Brewers starting lineup at the big league level in a few years.