Height is on the horizon for Crew with tall trio in Triple-A

PHOENIX -- Despite appearances, the Brewers are not a one-size-fits-all organization.

Sure, the acquisition of 5-foot-7 infield/outfield prospect Jett Williams highlighted Milwaukee’s willingness to build a roster out of shorter players. Among the expected Opening Day starters are catcher William Contreras (5-foot-10), first baseman Andrew Vaughn (5-foot-10), shortstop Joey Ortiz (5-foot-10), third baseman Luis Rengifo (5-foot-9) and right fielder Sal Frelick (5-foot-9).

But look only one step below, and you’ll see something striking: The big men are coming to Milwaukee.

The projected Triple-A Nashville Opening Day roster is littered with taller prospects like shortstop Cooper Pratt (Milwaukee’s No. 4 prospect), first baseman/third baseman Luke Adams (No. 13) and third baseman/first baseman Brock Wilken (No. 22), each of whom stands 6-foot-4.

“I think it's a credit to the scouts where they don't rule anything out,” said Brewers farm director Tom Flanagan.

All three bring something different to the table too.

Pratt -- the only Top 100 prospect of the trio at No. 64 -- is considered a gifted defender at shortstop with impressive instincts and internal clock and a plus arm that helps him make throws from deep in the hole. He was trending in a positive direction regarding his contact rate at Double-A Biloxi in 2025 but hasn’t found consistent power, despite his size, and that’ll be the focus in his first trip to the Minors’ top level.

Adams is an on-base king with a career .423 OBP across four Minor League seasons, both because he doesn’t much expand the zone and he’s as willing as anyone in the Minors to be hit by a pitch. (His 85 HBPs are second most in MiLB since 2023.) He showed closer to average power than Pratt in the Southern League while coming back from a left shoulder contusion in June, but is much less of a defender, with many believing he’ll end up manning the cold corner long term.

Wilken’s big strength is his pop; he left Wake Forest as the ACC career leader in homers with 71. With 18 blasts and just a 13 percent chase rate in his first 65 games for Biloxi, he was trending toward a Nashville debut in 2025 before he suffered a dislocated left kneecap during a division-title celebration, and he underwent knee surgery early in the offseason to address lingering issues. Seven of his 10 batted-ball events in Cactus League games this spring have been hit with exit velocities above 99 mph, so he appears to be back to his usual self at the plate.

They’re three dudes capable of grabbing a rebound with standout traits that have helped them carve out Triple-A roles in baseball’s deepest farm system.

“I think for our scouts with hitters, they just look for certain things rather than size,” Flanagan said. “A big one is, hey, good zone judgment is good zone judgment, no matter your size.”

Of course, the Nashville Sounds will be a mix height-wise, with Williams likely at second base next to Pratt and 5-foot-7 Luis Lara, a plus-plus defender in center field. Top prospect Jesús Made also looms at 6-foot-1. But it’s a group that should be fun in all sizes, as Nashville’s Rick Sweet, whose career as a Minor League manager began in 1987, can attest.

“Rick Sweet’s been doing it forever, and he's so excited,” Flanagan said. “He said it last year, and that was without Williams. ‘Oh, having those young kids next year [will be huge].' They made him want to do this again.”

Camp standout: Jesús Made (No. 1, MLB No. 3)
The top Milwaukee prospect is not your typical 18-year-old non-roster invitee, not that those ever are typical. Because of the club’s World Baseball Classic commitments, there have been many openings for young players to get experience in Maryvale. As such entering Sunday, Made was tied for sixth on the roster in Cactus League plate appearances with 30. He hasn’t been overmatched either, going 9-for-28 (.321) with 10 of his 20 batted balls exceeding 95 mph of exit velocity.

The ceiling is immense for the switch-hitting middle infielder, who will open up his age-19 season with Double-A Biloxi, with plus grades for his hit, power and run tools. And he’s a player the Brewers know they can keep pushing.

“You look at him, and this kid could be out of a college program,” Flanagan said. “Physically, he's hit the ground running from last year on. But mentally, we've challenged him all along with going right to [Single-A] Carolina last year and things like that. He doesn't really bat an eye. He takes it, rolls with the punches and says, ‘This is what they're doing. I’ve got to keep up and do my part.’ Nothing seems to faze him. There are no issues motivating him. He wants to get better.”

Breakout potential: Bishop Letson (No. 9)
Letson threw only 41 1/3 innings last season due to a right shoulder impingement that never needed surgery. He sat 91-95 mph with his fastball in that time and could put it right on top of batters with 7 1/2 feet of extension, putting him in Jacob Misiorowski territory for his ability to get down the mound.

So when the 21-year-old right-hander touched 97.7 mph on a called third strike in his first (and only) Cactus League outing on Feb. 22, it certainly turned plenty of heads across the industry. Both Letson and Flanagan admitted that early-spring adrenaline played a role in getting to the extra juice, but it’s still an improvement over his previous max. He’s generally been closer to 94-96 on the backfields, a product of focusing on strengthening the shoulder after last year, and that type of velo, when combined with the massive extension, could push Letson into Top 100 territory.

Before that talk can begin, the 6-foot-4 hurler must stick on the mound consistently in his third full season in hopes of at least doubling his career innings total of 104 2/3.

“If you look back at the end of the year and he’s gotten, say, 110 innings or 120 innings,” Flanagan said, “that’s going to be huge for his development.”

Something to prove: Jeferson Quero (No. 8)
Quero dropped out of MLB Pipeline’s Top 100 ranking after he didn’t quite look like himself in 2025, one year removed from a torn labrum in his right shoulder. Once a catcher with plus-plus arm strength, the Venezuela native only threw out 19 percent of attempted base-stealers in the International League, and he wasn’t quite swinging with his typical conviction until the second half, leading to a 101 wRC+ over 294 plate appearances.

Quero still graded out as one of the better ABS judges in Triple-A and profiles like a possible plus defender behind the plate. Considering he’ll be 23 for the duration of the regular season, he has time on his side to reestablish why he could be at least an adequate backup behind Contreras, and with Gary Sánchez in the bigs, he’ll get plenty of playing time with Nashville too.

“Now that we ramp up the workload a little bit, I’m not saying you'll get 100 percent back to where he was, maybe, but you'll have a good idea -- probably by midseason -- how much has come back after he's been doing it every day,” Flanagan said.

“Our staff is still excited about him in terms of all the other things that he does while calling the game. The bat isn’t affected. The quick release is still there, and he's not favoring it. My hope is -- like with a pitcher -- that the first year after surgery is a mulligan. We'll see what starts coming out now.”