2 Brewers roster hopefuls optioned in most recent wave of camp cuts

The closer and closer we get to 2024 Opening Day, the clearer the roster picture for the regular season is becoming. Yesterday, it was because of us learning that superstar prospect Jackson Chourio will reportedly be making the Milwaukee Brewers Opening Day roster.

Today, the picture became clearer for a different reason as yet another wave of spring training camp cuts and minor league options took place. With that wave, two players in particular who had chances of making the Opening Day roster found out they will be starting the season down in the minors.

Brewers infielders Owen Miller and Oliver Dunn were among the most recent wave of spring training cuts.

Per Milwaukee Journal Sentinel's Curt Hogg, Brewers infielders Owen MIller and Oliver Dunn were among a wave of players who were either optioned to Triple-A Nashville or sent to minor league camp. Both had good chances of making the Opening Day roster.

Miller in particular might be the biggest surprise of the bunch. His offensive numbers had come down this spring to a .233 average and .591 OPS, though slow starts in the spring aren't uncommon for players in Cactus League play.

The reason for the surprise is the defensive versatility that he provides as he can play anywhere on the infield except shortstop. He and Jake Bauers were the main backups to first base on the 40-man roster, though the latter is limited to just there and DH. The demotion of Miller all but guarantees that Bauers will crack the Opening Day roster himself.

Dunn, who has yet to make his MLB debut, had a tough road to the Opening Day roster as he's a newcomer to the organization and has plenty of utility infielders to fight past for that roster spot. He acquitted himself quite well with a .286 average and .876 OPS this spring as well as some strong defense, but he'll have to wait a while for his first taste of The Show.

Joining the pair in being optioned to Nashville were infielder Vinny Capra and pitcher Janson Junk. Capra has looked decent this spring with a .316 average, .802 OPS, and two doubles while Junk has given up four earned runs and a .308 average in six innings of work (6.00 ERA).

Three non-roster invitees were also reassigned to minor league camp in infielder Tyler Black and pitchers Robert Gasser and Jared Koenig. Black showed off his on base skills with a .351 OBP in 11 games though he had no extra base hits. There's a good chance he makes his debut at some point in 2024.

The same can definitely be said of Gasser as well. He was solid with a 2.70 ERA over 10 innings this spring as well as 11 strikeouts compared to just two walks. Though he'll start at Triple-A, Brewers manager Pat Murphy has already said that fans can expect to possibly see him in the majors very early this season.

Koenig, a minor league free agent signing this offseason, has had a strong spring as he has given up just one unearned run in 5.1 innings on six hits and three walks with seven strikeouts. He'll be a dark horse pitcher to watch this season.

Seven Cactus League games remain to settle the rest of the Opening Day roster. We'll have news of any final spring cuts as they come in.