Milwaukee Brewers: Ranking All of the Rookie Debuts So Far in 2023

The Milwaukee Brewers have gotten a lot of production from their rookie players so far in 2023, some expected, some very unexpected.

So far, eight players have made their rookie debuts, from Brice Turang all the way back on Opening Day, to Sal Frelick making an electric debut versus the Atlanta Braves.

We are entering September call-up season and this list may grow to include more rookies, possibly Robert Gasser or another player from the Milwaukee Brewers minor league system.

Let's look back at all eight and rank them:

Ranking Milwaukee Brewers 2023 Rookie Debuts: #8 Clayton Andrews

Clayton Andrews made his major league debut on July 1st and it unfortunately did not go well. The Brewers jumped out to a 10-0 lead over the Pirates in Pittsburgh, a lead that got as close as 11-8 by the time the game ended. A rain delay may have aided the Brewers in their win.

Andrews pitched just two-thirds of an inning, faced seven batters, and gave up four hits and a walk and finished with five earned runs. The Brewers did emerge victorious, which at the end of the day is the most important thing.

After his rough debut, Andrews has made only one other appearance in the big leagues, one inning against the Chicago Cubs on Independence Day, where a wild pitch allowed the extra innings runner on second to advance, a single scored him, and Andrews took the loss.

Ranking Milwaukee Brewers 2023 Rookie Debuts: #7 Abner Uribe

Abner Uribe is a flamethrowing relief pitcher who made his debut somewhat unexpectedly back on July 8th. Uribe didn't have a terrible debut by any means. In an 8-5 loss to the Cincinnati Reds, Uribe pitched two innings, gave up two hits, an earned run and had two strikeouts.

It took 10 days until Uribe's next appearance but Abner has been fantastic for over a month following his okay debut. Uribe has pitched in 20 games this season to a 1.83 ERA with 23 strikeouts and just 10 walks. Uribe also registered his first career save in an August 11th matchup with the Chicago White Sox.

Ranking Milwaukee Brewers 2023 Rookie Debuts: #6 Gus Varland

Gus Varland, like Brice Turang, was on Milwaukee's Opening Day roster. Varland was a Rule 5 draft pick from the Los Angeles Dodgers organization. He debuted on Opening Day in the Brewers 4-0 loss to the Cubs. Varland pitched a scoreless inning, gave up two hits and a walk, and recorded one strikeout.

Varland was a decent pitcher before missing some time due to injury, however, when he returned from his time on the injured list, he struggled mightily and was ultimately designated for assignment and returned to the Dodgers.

Ranking Milwaukee Brewers 2023 Rookie Debuts: #5 Brice Turang

Turang is one of a few rookies that was on the Milwaukee Brewers Opening Day roster and was even the starting second baseman on a cold first game of the year in Chicago. The Brewers lost but Turang batted 1-for-3 on the day and we got to see the beginning of a middle infield pairing that has produced a lot of excitement during the 2023 season.

Turang was the turn man on one double play in this game, also had two ground ball putouts and caught one pop out.

Since his debut, Turang was sent back down to Triple-A in June and since returning has been an important part of the Brewers' success. Turang's plate discipline has improved, he's striking out less, and is arguably playing Gold Glove quality defense.

Ranking Milwaukee Brewers 2023 Rookie Debuts: #4 Joey Wiemer

Joey Wiemer made his Brewers debut very early in the season. The 2020 4th round pick was the first player called up from Triple-A following the injury on Opening Day to Luis Urias. Wiemer made his debut on April Fools Day and went 1-for-2 with a double. The Brewers scored three runs in the 8th inning that day to win 3-1 over the Cubs.

Wiemer has given Milwaukee fantastic defense all season long in center field. He has also flashed some power with his 13 home runs, however his batting average needs some work down at .210. It is important to remember, though, that Wiemer is a rookie and will get better as he gets more experience against Major League pitching.

Bottom line, Wiemer plays defense the way few others can, has hit a couple walk-offs, and is surely in the Milwaukee Brewers' future plans.

Ranking Milwaukee Brewers 2023 Rookie Debuts: #3 Blake Perkins

The Brewers signed Blake Perkins to a one-year deal after most recently being a part of the Yankees organization. Perkins did make two appearances as a pinch runner before making his first career start on April 22nd against the Boston Red Sox. In his debut, he went 1-for-3 and scored a run on a Christian Yelich double. The Brewers went on to win 5-4, a signature one-run win.

Perkins has played a much more prominent role than expected, helping out very importantly after the injury to Garrett Mitchell. Perkins also has a walk-off hit this season and, like Wiemer, plays great defense.

Blake Perkins is still 12th in defensive runs saved for outfielders in all of baseball. The crazy part about that fact is that Perkins has played just over 300 innings while all of his peers on the leaderboard have played over 600.