We need to be showing more love to Brewers outfielder Sal Frelick

His fellow outfielders have gotten plenty of love while it feels like he has flown a bit under the radar.

Milwaukee Brewers outfielder Sal Frelick (10) celebrates his solo home run during the fourth inning of their game against the Pittsburgh Pirates Wednesday, May 15, 2024 at American Family Field in Milwaukee, Wisconsin.
Milwaukee Brewers outfielder Sal Frelick (10) celebrates his solo home run during the fourth inning of their game against the Pittsburgh Pirates Wednesday, May 15, 2024 at American Family Field in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. / Mark Hoffman/Milwaukee Journal Sentinel

Milwaukee Brewers outfielders have gotten a lot of love this year. And that shouldn't be surprising, considering the team has a bunch of talented ones.

Christian Yelich obviously gets a ton of love. He's a former MVP (should've been two-time, but we've been over that before) and after a few down seasons by his starndards is starting to look like his own self. His performance even got him a starting spot in this year's All-Star game.

Jackson Chourio also gets plenty of love. The rookie phenom blazed his way through the minors and parlayed that into a long-term contract before he even played a major league game. And after struggling some to start the year, the 20-year-old has lately been starting to live up to some high expectations.

Blake Perkins has gotten quite a bit of love as well. His numbers may not jump off the page, but he has gone on a few offensive heaters at different times this season and has made numerous outstanding plays in the field.

Then you have Sal Frelick. Don't get me wrong, the 24-year-old has plenty of admirers among the Brewers fanbase. But it often feels like he doesn't garner nearly the amount of attention as his outfield mates, let alone many other players on the team. And that's surprising considering the decent numbers he's put up this season.

Have many of us taken Brewers outfielder Sal Frelick's season for granted? Does he deserve more love?

With all the players that Brewers manager Pat Murphy has rotated through his outfield, Frelick is the outfielder with the most games played on the season with 87 and is fourth in games played among all players on the team. So clearly Murphy has plenty of trust in Frelick to go out and get the job done day after day.

Generally, that faith has been well rewarded. Frelick is slashing a very solid .275/.349/.354 through his 87 games this year. Both his batting average and on base percentage ranks fourth on the team among players with at least 50 at bats this season.

Frelick ranks high on the team in a number of other offensive categories as well. He is fifth on the team in runs scored with 43 runs scored, which for reference is just two behind Brice Turang who has batted leadoff more than anyone on the team and gets on base plenty in his own right. Frelick is also tied for fourth on the team in doubles with 13 and is tied for third on the team with 14 steals.

It's hard to say why Frelick has flown under the radar a bit in 2024. Maybe it's because he's not hitting homers or driving a bunch of runners in. Maybe it's because he's mostly batted in the 5-7 spot in the lineup, not exactly one of the premier spots in the batting order. Maybe it's just because he's still new to much of the fanbase being in his sophomore season.

Whatever the reason may be, Frelick is a big part of the reason why the Brewers have been as successful as they are this season. So the next time you get a chance, show him the love he deserves.

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