Brewers: 5 Players Who Could Be Added To 40 Man Roster This Month

The end of the July is always an exciting time of the year in regards to trades across baseball. This year, the Brewers made their biggest move a few days ahead of time, but still added bullpen depth on the day of the deadline. Following the trade deadline, the next major MLB critical point is September call ups.

In years past, rosters expanded drastically to allow minor league prospects and fringe MLB players the opportunity to play at the big league level. This year, rosters will expand to just 28 players.  This is just two extra players when compared to the remainder of the season.

For September call ups, a promoted player must be on the team’s 40 man roster. If they are added to the 40 man prior to August 31st, they would be playoff eligible. Given the increasing amount of Brewers players on the COVID IL, we may see a few players promoted prior to September.

The Brewer currently have quite a few active players who are likely to lose their 40 man roster spot.  Additionally, Travis Shaw and Daniel Vogelbach are currently on rehab assignments and corresponding moves will have to be made. With the acquisition of Eduardo Escobar and hot hitting of Rowdy Tellez, it will be interesting to see where those two players fit in, if at all.

Regardless, the Brewers do have some players who look ready to contribute and are currently in the minor leagues. Here are five players that could be added to the Brewers 40 man roster this month.

1. UTIL Weston Wilson

At 27 years old, not too many are familiar with the 2016 17th round draft pick out of Clemson.  After spending both the 2018 and 2019 season at the Double-A level in the minor leagues, Wilson made the jump to Triple-A this season. So far, he is having quite the season.

On the year he has a .267/.354/.548/.902 slash line with 16 home runs and 35 runs batted in. In 2019, he hit 19 home runs and hit 14 bombs in 2018, but to continue to rake a level higher is quite impressive. As a right handed batter with pop, he would be a valuable addition.

As for defense, Wilson has been all over the place.  He has played first base the most with182 innings coming at that position  However he also has played 104 innings at shortstop, 75 innings at second base, 48 innings at third base, and 70 innings in the corner outfield spots. Should he get added to the 40 man and get a shot at the bigs, Craig Counsell could insert him almost anywhere defensively.

2. LHP Ethan Small

Small was drafted in 2019 during the first round out of Mississippi State. He spent three years in their program and was projected to move through the minor leagues rather quickly. Of course there was no 2020 minor league season but he did spend that time at the alternate training site and has already earned a promotion from Biloxi (Double A) to Nashville (Triple A) this season.

On the season, Small has thrown 56 innings and has a 1.77 ERA. He has struck out 73 batters along the way and was not phased by the promotion from a statistical standpoint. As a former college starter, the high amount of innings he has thrown in a season is 107.

Unfortunately a finger injury has sidelined him since mid-July.  This injury may be the biggest impeding factor as to what keeps him down in the minor leagues.

Upon returning he will need to amp up his throwing and conditioning once again. He has been utilized as a starter this year, but should he get the promotion he would likely come out of the bullpen.

3. RHP Luke Barker

As a member of the Brewers minor league organization since 2017, Barker has done nothing but impress. The 29 year old has logged over 200 minor league innings and has a career 2.23 ERA, .191 opponent batting average, and 0.91 WHIP. Those numbers are certainly impressive.

After a lost minor league season due to COVID, Barker maintained his spot with the Triple-A affiliate Nashville Sounds this season. In 34 relief appearances this season, Barker has a 2.29 ERA, .147 opponent batting average, and 0.66 WHIP.  He somehow has managed to outperform his already impressive career averages!

With the Brewers pitching staff seemingly getting hit the hardest with COVID cases, one would have to think that Barker will get his chance this year. If he doesn’t, it will be because he remains blocked by other bullpen arms.

Daniel Norris and John Curtiss were acquired at the deadline and likely will remain with the Brewers through the remainder of the season.  Jake Cousins, and Jandel Gustave have all done well with their big league opportunities prior to landing on the IL, which makes optioning them down more difficult. Managing pitchers is always a tough decision, but Barker definitely deserves a shot given his performance.