PHOENIX -- With only 16 days until Opening Day, Brewers manager Craig Counsell isn’t yet ready to announce roster decisions. But soon enough, the club will have some tough ones to make.
Perhaps none tougher than whether to keep veteran slugger Logan Morrison. And the deadline for that decision is approaching sooner than others.
Morrison is mashing this spring as a non-roster invitee, proving that he might be worthy of a spot on Milwaukee’s 26-man roster. If the Crew doesn’t plan on including him, then with 10 days to go in Spring Training, the 32-year-old first baseman/left fielder can opt out of his Minor League contract, which is likely given that he’s said he won’t accept an assignment to the Minors.
In the meantime, Morrison continues to rake. After going 2-for-3 with a pair of singles in Tuesday’s game vs. the Royals at Surprise Stadium, he is 9-for-27 (.333) with three home runs and seven RBIs in 11 Cactus League contests.
“I think what Logan’s done is what you need Logan Morrison to do, right?” Counsell said. “You need Logan to be a bat. You need him to hit. That’s been his calling card as a Major League player. That’s how he makes a roster, is he gives you a bat. He’s done that. He’s done his part so far.”
Some players attribute strong springs to offseason work or mechanical adjustments. Not Morrison. He’s confident in the abilities he already had. He just thinks he needed more chances to show it.
“I was pretty good last year, too. I just didn’t get any opportunity,” Morrison said. “When I did play every day in the Minor Leagues, I was really good. When you get one [at-bat] a night and you get a start every month, it’s kind of tough to get your timing down.”
Morrison batted .308/.369/.640 with 18 home runs and 49 RBIs in 61 games at Triple-A last season. He went 7-for-35 with two homers and three RBIs in 29 games for the Phillies down the stretch.
That confidence is why Morrison’s approach in the Cactus League has been simple.
“I don’t have Spring Training goals for numbers or anything like that,” Morrison said. “Just get good pitches to hit, swing at those good pitches and barrel them up, get them in the air, see what happens. If they don’t want to give me good pitches, then take your walk.”
When Morrison gets those pitches, he can do damage -- literally. On Sunday, his third home run of the spring went beyond the right-field berm at American Family Fields of Phoenix, with the ball denting a Grand Canyon University sign on the fly.
It would be an easy decision to include Morrison if the Brewers didn’t have several other quality veterans also trying to earn roster spots. Justin Smoak is expected to platoon with Ryan Braun at first base, while Eric Sogard, Jedd Gyorko, Ryon Healy, Brock Holt and Jace Peterson can all play multiple positions around the diamond.
So Morrison’s time with the Brewers could either be nearing its end or only beginning, depending on what the club decides. And while his main priority is getting big league time, he wouldn’t mind sticking with the Crew and battling for a National League Central title in 2020.
“I definitely would love to be in Milwaukee. I like the guys here,” Morrison said. “Hopefully, it’s here. If it’s not, it will be somewhere else.”