3 surprising players who are off to strong starts for the Brewers

Although the Brewers have posted an underwhelming 8-9 record through their first 17 games, and are in the midst of a disappointing three-game losing streak, several players who fans did not expect to be big-league contributors have stood out with their early-season performances.

Over the course of a 162-game season, unexpected performances from under-the-radar players are necessary to ensure success. Winning seasons certainly don't come from individual performances, but to expect a team to only have 26 contributors, the size of an active MLB roster, throughout the season is also an oversight. No, winning seasons require contributions from the entire organization and are the result of several players out-performing their expectations. Let's look at three Brewers who are far outdoing their preseason projections and bolstering the Brewers’ success with their surprising performances.

Chad Patrick

For starters, the most impressive thing about Patrick is the fact that he has made three starts already this season and has only given up one run. Patrick has made starts against teams with strong offenses, the Kansas City Royals, Cincinnati Reds, and Arizona Diamondbacks, when the Brewers have needed it most.

The most impressive of his three starts has to be his most recent outing against the Diamondbacks. Patrick went 4.1 innings, walked two batters, and struck out three, while allowing zero runs to score. The Diamondbacks have some power on their team, and the fact that they only managed five hits against Patrick in almost five full innings says a lot about Patrick and the excellent work he has done so far this season.

Abner Uribe

So far this season, Uribe has made seven appearances out of the bullpen for the Brewers, amassing 7.2 innings and posting a 1.17 ERA and a 1.04 WHIP.

Uribe's previous kryptonite, his lack of command, has seemingly disappeared this year. He's allowed just three walks this season, while maintaining his high strikeout rate. That being said, his only earned run of the season came against the Colorado Rockies last Thursday, and was the result of a leadoff walk to Mickey Moniak.

Uribe looks like a far more controlled pitcher this season, and with the set-up man role currently up for grabs, expect Uribe to continue pitching later and later in games.

Jake Bauers

Bauers' role for the Brewers has been limited thus far. He has only appeared in nine games, collecting just 15 at-bats and two scoreless innings on the mound! Talk about doing everything you can to help the team win.

In only 19 plate appearances, he has collected a home run, a double, three RBIs, and four walks. The combination of extra-base hits and bases on balls has propelled Bauers' OPS to .889 in the small sample size. His two innings pitched have come in games where the Brewers were getting blown out, saving the overworked bullpen from having to cover one more inning.

Get you a player that can do both, take that Shohei Ohtani!