The Milwaukee Brewers welcome the San Francisco Giants for a three-game series this week to kick off their 2016 campaign. With first pitch at 1:10 PM CT on Monday, here are the storylines to watch this season.
Develop, develop, develop
This is the only real concrete goal the Brewers should have going into the season. With young players like infielders Yadiel Rivera and Jonathan Villar or outfielders Domingo Santana, Keon Broxton, and Ramon Flores on the Opening Day roster, it’s clear the Brewers are building for the future. But if players are not developing and making clear gains, the season is really lost.
Fans are not expecting an 80-win, or even a 70-win season. But they are expecting to see young talent developing and make tangible gains as the depths of summer drag on. Based off of Spring Training statistics though, there is no reason to doubt gains won’t be made.
Both Rivera and Santana arguably had some of the best play this spring for the Brewers. Rivera had 3 home runs and 11 RBIs in 48 at bats. In 40 at bats, Santana hit for a .350 average and scored 10 runs. Second basemen Scooter Gennett is also looking to develop. He has notoriously been atrocious against left handed pitching, but this spring, he hit for a .625 average in 8 at-bats against southpaws. Granted it is a very small sample size, it is a good sign going into what could be Gennett’s last season to prove he can be an everyday player.
Phone calls
Keeping with the young Brewers theme, one of the most important storylines to watch is the Brewers minor league system and who gets called up when. Some thought the Brewers top-prospect, shortstop Orlando Arcia, would make the Opening Day roster but GM David Stearns and the organization decided to start him in Triple-A to begin the year. Joining Arcia on the Colorado Springs Sky Sox roster are pitchers Zach Davies, Damien Magnifico and Jorge Lopez. Outfielder Michael Reed could also make his way to the majors if no one can become a consistent center fielder for the Brewers
The Double A team, the Biloxi Shuckers, is also stacked with young talent. Top outfield prospect, Brett Phillips, is accompanied by catching prospect Jacob Nottingham and pitching prospects Josh Hader and Adrian Houser. While it’s unlikely all the Double-A prospects make it to the majors this year besides Phillips, the young talent that will be filling out the Brewers’ minor league system probably be more entertaining to follow than what could be a dreadful year at the major league level.
Trading Block
New GM David ‘Slingin’ Stearns has shown he is not afraid to make trades, dealing away talent like shortstop Jean Segura and outfielder Khris Davis. In return of course, he has gotten prospects, which is exactly what the rebuilding Brewers need. Most likely, that trading is not over. Catcher Jonathan Lucroy is the most likely player to get traded before the August deadline.
Other players who the Brewers are most likely trying to unload are Ryan Braun and Aaron Hill. Both are veterans, but Braun’s contract will probably keep him around unless he has an All-Star, and then some, season. Also, don’t be surprised if players like Wily Peralta or Jeremy Jeffress end the year in different uniforms. Jeffress is primed to be the Brewers closer, but at age 28, he is expendable, as the Brewers are looking to win in the future. The same goes for Peralta, who is 26. In theory though, anyone on this roster is on the block, for the right price, as Stearns has shown he is willing to pull the trigger.
Where are the fans?
With the team unlikely to contend for even third place in the NL Central, the Brewers steady attendance rates will most likely take a dive. Due to this, it will be interesting to see how the organization tries to get fans in the seats.
One of the newer things the Brewers have done is post-game concerts. In 2015 they brought in Joe Nichols, O.A.R. and the Goo Goo Dolls. They are continuing this in 2016 with pop artist Andy Grammar and country star Kip Moore. Despite the success of the post-game concert series last year, that only helps attendance for two games.
For faithful fans just looking to enjoy baseball, good or bad, they will be rewarded with low ticket prices. But most likely, attendance will be poor unless the organization pulls out all the stops and the talent on the field isn’t a complete abomination.
The lone All-Star
Thanks to MLB rules, every team gets one All-Star representative. So no matter how rough of a year it is, the Brewers will have someone to cheer for in the Mid-Summer Classic. The obvious answers would be Ryan Braun or Jonathan Lucroy. But if Braun is hampered by injuries and Lucroy is on another team, it really is a wide open competition.
One player who could snag the All-Star spot would most likely be pitcher Jimmy Nelson. In 15 innings pitched, Nelson had a 1.17 ERA and 7 strikeouts. But if the pitching is as rough as last year, and Nelson struggles, it will be interesting to see who pulls away as the Brewers 2016 All-Star.
All in all, this year will most likely be a rough one. So buckle up and enjoy the bumpy ride.
*All stats from MLB.com