Brewers’ 2026 second-round pick shows off impressive toolset in professional debut

The highest-ranked member of the Milwaukee Brewers' 2026 draft class was not their first-round pick, high school shortstop Trey Ebel; it was college outfielder Sawyer Strosnider who fell to the Brewers in the second round. Strosnider, who many draft experts had tagged as a first-round talent, was selected by Milwaukee with the 66th overall pick in this year's draft, despite being the No. 22-ranked prospect in the draft class according to MLB Pipeline.

Shortly after the draft, the Brewers gave Strosnider a $2.1 million signing bonus, which was well above the $1.35 million value of the 66th overall pick, signaling their belief in the 21-year-old outfielder. After putting pen to paper, it took a few weeks for the Brewers to assign Strosnider to a minor league affiliate, but on Tuesday they officially announced that the second-round pick would be joining the High-A Wisconsin Timber Rattlers for his official professional debut.

Strosnider, who played two seasons at TCU, skipped both Rookie Ball and Low-A, which is not necessarily uncommon for recent Brewers' draft picks with college experience. 2025 first-round pick Andrew Fischer jumped right to High-A after being drafted by the Brewers last year, as did Blake Burke back in 2024. On Tuesday night, with the T-Rats hosting the Cedar Rapids Kernels, the Minnesota Twins' High-A affiliate, Strosnider made his debut, and it's safe to say he impressed.

Brewers' 2026 second-round pick Sawyer Strosnider flashes power and speed with triple in professional debut

Batting second and playing right field for the Timber Rattlers on Tuesday night, Strosnider struck out looking in his first at-bat before walking and grounding out to second base in his next two trips to the plate. However, in his fourth plate appearance of the game, which came in the top of the seventh, the left-handed hitting Strosnider roped a line drive off the left field wall, and after the ball bounced away from Kernels' outfielder Byron Chourio (no relation to Jackson), Strosnider coasted into third base with a triple.

It's fitting that Strosnider's first hit in professional baseball was a triple. The 6'2" outfielder possesses both 60-grade power and speed (on the 20-80 scouting scale), and he showed both off during his three-bagger on Tuesday night. Additionally, during his first season at TCU, Stronsider racked up 10 triples in 56 games, to go along with 13 doubles, 11 homers, and 10 stolen bases.

Stronsider followed up his debut with a two-hit performance in the T-Rats' extra-innings loss to the Kernels on Wednesday night. The young outfielder also collected his first two minor league RBIs and first professional stolen base during the contest.

Expectations are certainly high for the Brewers' 2026 second-round pick, and those expectations will only rise if Strosnider continues his hot start with the Timber Rattlers. After Milwaukee parted ways with two outfield prospects at this year's trade deadline, Stronsider's development became that much more important.

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