Ranking every player on the Brewers 40-man roster 25 and under

Top Brewers age 25 and under #6 – RHP Dylan File

Dylan File, 26 in June, has yet to crack the big leagues for the Crew, steadily rising through the minor league ranks since his drafting by the Brewers in the 21st round of the 2017 MLB draft.

File is a right-handed starting pitcher who has huge strikeout numbers alongside low walk rates during the majority of his minor league career. File’s best season came in 2019 when he made 26 starts, posted a 3.24 ERA and 15-6 record, and struck out 136 batters against just 22 walks in 147 innings.

Last year was a down year for File, who made 13 starts and took something of a developmental step backwards with a 5.36 ERA but he did suffer an early season injury that took him out for half the year. Never one to allow many home runs, File gave up 8 in just 50 innings last season, which Brewers fans and front office execs are undoubtedly hoping was just a fluke after missing the entirety of 2020 due to the minor league season being canceled.

Top Brewers age 25 and under #5 – C Mario Feliciano

Mario Feliciano, the youngest member of the Brewers’ 40-man roster, made a surprise cameo appearance in the major leagues last season after injuries to the Brewers catching corps forced him onto the big league roster.

He received just one plate appearance in which he drew a walk and later scored his first big league run.

To begin 2022, Feliciano is expected to be the everyday catcher at the club’s Triple-A affiliate and has likely put himself firmly in the #3 spot on the Crew’s depth chart behind the plate.

Over the course of Feliciano’s minor league career, he’s been known to be more of a bat-first catcher and had his best season yet back in 2019 when he hit 19 home runs and posted a .273 batting average in 116 games and 482 plate appearances.

Top Brewers age 25 and under #4 – INF Keston Hiura

After bursting onto the big league scene in 2019 with an incredible 19 home run showing in 84 games, Keston Hiura looked like he was going to be a key contributor to this Brewers lineup for years to come.

Unfortunately for both team and player, things haven’t gone according to plan for him ever since that season.

Battling through mechanical issues and off-the-field family health problems, Hiura has struggled mightily in each of the past two seasons, reaching an all-time low last season when he struck out 77 times in 197 plate appearances and finished the season with a .168 batting average.

Hiura looked very strong during this year’s Spring Training, hitting four home runs in 33 plate appearances and posting a .393 batting average while adding left field to his positional repertoire. To begin the regular season, Hiura hasn’t quite looked like his 2019-self but he seems to be better than he was in both 2020 and 2021.

Through his first nine games and 25 plate appearances, Hiura has five hits (including a home run) and a .238 batting average while making defensive appearances at both first and second base.

Top Brewers age 25 and under #3 – LHP Aaron Ashby

Aaron Ashby burst onto the scene last season for the Brewers, pitching in 31 innings down the stretch for the club, striking out 39 batters along the way – good for an 11.1 K/9 rate.

After a rough debut in June of last year, Ashby followed that first start up with three consecutive 2+ inning scoreless outings, lowering his ERA from 54.00 to 4.15, making it as low as 2.77 at one point.

While he certainly projects as a starting pitcher long-term, Ashby has proven to be very effective in long-relief situations as well, throwing multi-inning scoreless outings in relief in five of his 13 appearances last season.

Hidden behind Corbin Burnes, Brandon Woodruff, Freddy Peralta, Eric Lauer and Adrian Houser on the starting pitcher depth chart, Ashby will function as a sixth-starter/long-relief option in 2022 for the Brewers.

He may find himself a staple in the Brewers’ rotation as soon as 2023.

Top Brewers age 25 and under #2 – INF Luis Urias

After a mediocre first season as a member of the Milwaukee Brewers, fans of the Crew were unsure how to feel about Luis Urias moving forward.

Then 2021 happened and now, Urias is one of the most popular players on this team and is viewed as a legitimate building-block for the Brewers and their future.

In his first full season of at bats at the major league level, Urias hit 23 home runs and drove in 75 runs while bringing his walk-rate up and lowering his strikeout rate from previous career marks.

On defense, Urias is capable of playing second, third and shortstop – not only playing the positions but playing them well. His above-average throwing arm and nice hands make for a nice third baseman but also a decent middle infielder who can turn double plays with the best of them.

Urias has yet to appear in a regular season game for the Crew so far in 2022 as he continues to battle his way back from a quad injury, but once he does, he figures to slot in as the team’s everyday third baseman. Fans are expecting big things of him once he makes his triumphant return.

Top Brewers age 25 and under #1 – RHP Freddy Peralta

There have been multiple times since his debut in 2018 that Freddy Peralta looked like a future high-leverage relief pitcher more than an ace-caliber starting pitcher.

Echoing the sentiment from the runner up on this list, then 2021 happened.

Peralta, 26 in June (on the same day as Dylan File), pitched his way firmly into the “best pitcher in the National League” conversation last year, making his first career All Star Game appearance as well as posting a sub-3.00 ERA (finishing the year with a 2.81 ERA).

Ditching the nickname “Fastball Freddy”, Peralta has added a lethal slider to his pitch repertoire and now possesses more than one weapon he can use to fool hitters at the plate.

After finishing just shy of 200 strikeouts last year, Peralta is a near-lock to top that mark this season alongside rotation-mates Corbin Burnes and Brandon Woodruff.

The Brewers are putting together one hell of a team as they continue their dominance of the NL Central. With youngsters Aaron Ashby, Luis Urias and Freddy Peralta making an impact at the big league level, look for the club’s successes to continue well past the 2022 campaign.