Brewers: 3 Juicy storylines to watch in this weekend's matchup against Orioles

The balanced schedule MLB went to a couple years ago allows teams to play every other team in the league at least once per year. That means the Brewers will face a team in the AL East like the Orioles that they would previously only face once every three years.

The Brewers and Orioles are two very similar teams. They're both winning a lot early on this season and are competing for the playoffs, they're both young, and they're operating on limited budgets.

But there's so much more to this three game series than just that. Let's get into the big, juicy storylines for fans to keep an eye on this weekend.

Juicy Storyline #1: The Corbin Burnes trade reunion

Once that Corbin Burnes trade happened, this weekend's series was sure to be circled on the schedule for all involved. The Brewers sent Burnes, the 2021 NL Cy Young winner with one year left before free agency, to the Orioles in exchange for DL Hall, Joey Ortiz, and a Competitive Balance A Draft pick.

So far, Burnes is doing Burnes things in 2024, posting a 1.93 ERA with a 0.75 WHIP in his first three starts. He's as dominant as ever in his platform year and he's the probable starter for Sunday's finale opposite Colin Rea. The Brewers will go from watching Burnes carve up hitters night in and night out to potentially watching him carve them up.

On the flip side, both players the Brewers acquired from Baltimore are on the team and they'll be looking to beat their former squad. DL Hall is scheduled to start on Saturday for the Crew. He hasn't been as dominant as Burnes, although to be fair that's difficult for anyone to do. Hall has a 4.82 ERA in his two starts with a 1.92 WHIP.

Joey Ortiz has had a solid start, hitting .300 with a .767 OPS through his first 20 ABs with the Brewers. He figures to get a couple of starts here at third base against the team that couldn't find room for him in their infield.

Ortiz can get revenge, Hall can get revenge, and Burnes can get revenge. All three players involved in the deal will have the opportunity to show their former team what they're missing.

Juicy storyline #2: Jackson vs Jackson, the top two prospects in baseball

There's a consensus top two prospects in all of baseball right now, the top tier. It consists of Brewers outfielder Jackson Chourio and Orioles infielder Jackson Holliday. Chourio signed an 8 year contract extension this offseason and made the Opening Day roster while Holliday was just recently promoted to the big leagues this week.

Holliday's promotion sets up a showdown between the top two prospects in all of baseball and will share the same field for the first time in their careers. By the time Holliday got to the Carolina League after being drafted first overall in 2022, Chourio was already up to High-A. They weren't in the same leagues again until Triple-A where Chourio only played six games and they weren't against Holliday's Norfolk Tides.

Chourio has had a great start to his big league career, hitting .282 with a pair of home runs, nine RBIs, two stolen bases, and a .788 OPS in his first 10 games. The Brewers could not ask for much more out of their 20 year old outfielder.

The 20 year old Holliday has only played in two games and is still seeking his first MLB hit. He'll get plenty of opportunities for it in these three games against the Crew and it'll be on his home field in front of his home fans.

Chourio and Holliday are the two youngest players in the major leagues and they're the two most talented youngsters, both with superstar potential. While they won't "face" each other, how both young players perform in this series will be compared against each other.