Milwaukee Brewers studs and duds from a Slam-tastic month of June

June, not July, can often be the "dog days of summer" for baseball players and fans. The shine of the beginning of the season is over, but the All-Star break, trade deadline, and playoff push isn't quite here yet either. You wouldn't know that watching the Milwaukee Brewers.

The Crew provided plenty of excitement for fans over the last month, from grand slams to inside-the-park home runs, even a continuing barrage of injuries couldn't keep this team down as they exited the month still atop the NL Central with a 6.5-game lead over the ascending Cardinals.

As usual, there were a lot of great performances, but also ones that fell below expectations. And also as usual, we'll take some of the highlights and lowlights from the month of the June in the form of Brewers studs and duds.

Milwaukee Brewers hitting stud: OF Jackson Chourio

Even the greatest prospects often struggle when first breaking into the league. The truly great ones are those who adjust and turn things around. It's starting to look like the Brewers have one of those truly great ones in outfielder Jackson Chourio.

The 20-year-old had a hot first couple weeks after debuting on Opening Day this year before struggling over the next month and a half or so. But once June hit, something clicked and Chourio took off.

He finished the month hitting .315 with a .897 OPS in 24 games with four doubles, four homers, and 16 RBIs, all of which but the average (which was just two points behind leader Christian Yelich) led the team for the month. He had two inside-the-park homers, one legitimate and one of the little league variety, and a grand slam as well. Watch out league, Chourio is back!

Milwaukee Brewers hitting dud: 1B Rhys Hoskins

The top offensive acquisition of the Brewers this offseason by far, first baseman Rhys Hoskins missed a good portion of the month of May due to a hamstring injury. He's been fully healthy in June, but has taken a long time to bounce back from that injury.

In 23 games, he batted just .213 with a .602 OPS while driving in nine. His 17 hits placed just seventh on the team for the month while his 30 strikeouts not only led the team in June (the next closest was Willy Adames with 25), they were tied for 10th most in the entire National League. Milwaukee brought Hoskins in to be a run producer, and there wasn't much of that happening in June.

Milwaukee Brewers pitching stud: SP Tobias Myers

The Brewers have a few pitchers who stood out in June and could have qualified for this honor. But one could argue that the pitcher who had the biggest impact on the team based on the state of his unit was rookie starter Tobias Myers.

After starting the season in the minors and then being optioned and subsequently recalled three different times, Myers stepped up in a big way in June. That's particularly important considering all the injury blows Milwaukee starting rotation has taken so far in 2024.

Myers started five games in the month of June and went 4-0 with a 1.44 ERA, a 0.89 WHIP, and a .185 batting average against, as well as a ratio of 24 strikeouts to just eight walks. Most importantly, the Brewers one every single one of his starts. Myers wasn't on the radar of very many fans before the season began, but almost certainly is now.

Milwaukee Brewers pitching dud: SP Carlos Rodriguez

Myers wasn't the only starting pitcher with a chance to take advantage of open spots in the Brewers starting rotation. Fellow Rookie Carlos Rodriguez, the team's No. 6 overall prospect according to MLB Pipeline, was brought up in June in an attempt to patch the rotation as well.

Unfortunately, things did not go as well for Rodriguez. He started three games in June and went just 12.1 combined innings, compiling a 7.30 ERA, 1.78 WHIP, and .365 batting average against, looking a bit overmatched in his first taste of the big leagues in losing all three of his starts. He'll get another chance at some point, but for now he has returned to Triple-A Nashville for more seasoning.

Bonus Milwaukee Brewers hitting stud: The SlamFam Crew

You didn't think we'd move on from the month of June without mentioning what the team did to end the month, did you? The Brewers blasted their way into July with a stretch of five grand slams over the final eight games of the month, a stretch that hadn't been seen since the Slam Diego team of 2020.

Second baseman Brice Turang (twice), first basemen Jake Bauers and Rhys Hoskins, and Chourio provided the fireworks that led to a barrage that had some crazy stats associated with it. What a way to turn around a team's bases loaded misfortune from earlier in the season.

The Brewers' month of July features their second west coast road trip of the season, the final series of the season against both the Pirates and Cubs, and of course the All-Star break. It'll be up to manager Pat Murphy to keep the good vibes rolling, something he's been great at doing in his first year at the helm in Milwaukee.