Major League Baseball

Milwaukee Brewers: Where Are the September Call-Ups of Last Season?

Published Jun. 30, 2017 6:28 p.m. ET

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Aug 29, 2016; Milwaukee, WI, USA; Milwaukee Brewers pitcher Zach Davies throws a pitch against the St. Louis Cardinals in the first inning at Miller Park. Mandatory Credit: Benny Sieu-USA TODAY Sports

While many are speculating who will be called up this year from the Milwaukee Brewers farm system, let’s take a look back at the 2015 September call-ups.

The 2016 season has been what many have been expecting for the Milwaukee Brewers. Rebuilding through the farm system and adding more at the trade deadline with big trades. Thus far young hopefuls like Jonathan Villar, Keon Broxton, Domingo Santana, Zach Davies, and Orlando Arcia have been ones to watch for. The September call-ups can do just that, but last year’s call-ups were a bit mixed as far as where the players are at now.

Last year, the Milwaukee Brewers waited a bit longer for call-ups as the Biloxi Shuckers got to the championship game and they felt like only one from Colorado Springs was worthy of it. So, let’s take a look at who was called up and how the 2016 season turned out for them.

Stayed on the Roster

SP Zach Davies

Davies was the only one who was called up from Colorado Springs last year. He didn’t show too much appeal as far as his short amount of time in AAA with 27 IP with a 5.00 ERA and 4.00 BB/9, but the Milwaukee Brewers weren’t worried those weren’t his type of numbers before being part of the organization. In September, he went 34 IP, 3.71 ERA, and 3.97 BB/9. He had plenty to work on, but showed promise. This year he proved worthy of being called up and has been a highlight of the rotation.

Injury-Plagued Pitchers

RP Yhonathan Barrios

The acquirement in the deal for OF Aramis Ramirez showed promise in just his 20 IP, 3.15 ERA, and 7.20 K/9. He did the same in September not giving up a run for the Milwaukee Brewers. Unfortunately, in early April it was announced he’d be undergoing rotator cuff surgery and out for the season.

SP Adrian Houser

Houser was one that seemed to never get it going after the September call-up this year. Being part of the Carlos Gomez packaged deal he showed lots of promise going 37 IP, 2.92 ERA and 3.55 FIP. But, starting with the AA team he seemed to do the opposite in 2016 with 70.1 IP along with a 5.25 ERA and 3.66 FIP. The essentials of ERA and BB/9 (2.82) went up and at the end of July it was announced he’d need Tommy John surgery. Maybe that was the reason for those numbers, but one can only guess.

SP Tyler Wagner

Wagner was part of the Jean Segura deal that sent both of them to the Arizona Diamondbacks in exchange for Chase Anderson, Aaron Hill, and Isan Diaz. He started the year in AAA before getting called up for more of a fill-in spot in the bullpen. He made 3 appearances before being sent back down. His last appearance was on May 13th before being put on the DL list. Wagner was put on for undisclosed reasons.

Sep 26, 2015; St. Louis, MO, USA; Milwaukee Brewers’ Michael Reed (25) scores on a single by Jonathan Lucroy (not pictured) during the sixth inning of a baseball game against the St. Louis Cardinals at Busch Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Scott Kane-USA TODAY Sports

Called-Up or Pretty Close

SS Yadiel Rivera

Rivera is one that has seen playing time for the Milwaukee Brewers in 2016 and even had a roster spot to start the season as he played well in Spring Training. His defense isn’t at all a question, it’s all what happens at the plate. After hitting .196/.213/.261 in 47 PAs and with Gennett coming back from injury, he was optioned to AAA. He was able to get a few more call-ups, but only for a short period of time as his total PAs were 52. His K% of 23.8% is the highest it’s been since Single-A, so he’ll need to get on-base in order to up a batting line like .229/.265/.326 in order to make any more appearances in the big leagues.

OF Michael Reed

With Keon Broxton’s struggles early in the year, it seemed like there were possibilities of Reed coming up to the big leagues once again. When he started playing CF, it became even more suspicious he’d go up, but it never happened. Last year, between AA/AAA, he went .269/.371/.410, but hasn’t quite matched it up this year having a .248/.364/.366 batting line. His K% is also up 4%. While these are small numbers, the Milwaukee Brewers have lots of options in the OF to look at, so any improvement would’ve been a plus.

Rough 2016 Season

SP Jorge Lopez

There have been lots of question marks about Jorge Lopez throughout the season. With career bests beyond Rookie League in IP (143.1) ERA (2.26), FIP (3.36), K/9 (8.60), he was an easy call-up to AAA. But, Colorado Springs was something else for Lopez as 6.2 or higher went for BB/9, ERA, and FIP in 79.1 IP. He seems to have bounced back a bit in AA getting his K/9 near 9.0 with a 4.2 ERA/FIP, so it’s still a possibility he could be a September call-up this year at the age of 23.

May 29, 2015; Milwaukee, WI, USA; Milwaukee Brewers second baseman Luis Sardinas (10) during the game against the Arizona Diamondbacks at Miller Park. Arizona won 7-5. Mandatory Credit: Jeff Hanisch-USA TODAY Sports

Technically Not a September Call-Up From AAA…

2B/SS Luis Sardinas

Sardinas is one that’s easy to forget about as he’s only 23-years old and already playing for his 4th organization. The Milwaukee Brewers acquired him through the Yovani Gallardo deal and then shipped him off to the Seattle Mariners for Ramon Flores as they got Jonathan Villar from the Houston Astros. He wasn’t a September call-up as he did appear earlier in the year from mid-May to early June. In AAA, he seemed to do a solid job batting .282/.319/.359 in 416 PAs, but didn’t show much in his full numbers with the Milwaukee Brewers as he a solid amount of opportunities. In 105 PAs, he batted .196/.240/.216. Milwaukee Brewers fans are probably okay now with the switch from Sardinas to Villar as the Mariners couldn’t get much out of him either sending him off to the Padres in mid-August.

OF Domingo Santana

Santana doesn’t necessarily count as a September call-up, but the Milwaukee Brewers promoted him on August 21st. Just another piece in the Carlos Gomez trade, Santana had 85 PAs in Colorado Springs and excelled batting .380/.424/.544. In 145 PAs with the Milwaukee Brewers in 2015, he was solid with 6 HRs, 18 RBIs and a .231/.345/.421. Early in the 2016 season he seemed to be adjusting his swing and being a good lead-off hitter for the Crew, but unfortunately, injuries held him back. At the very least, the 2017 outfield might be set for the team as long as long as the 3 (Braun, Broxton, Santana) stay healthy.

Conclusion

Like most baseball fans know, September call-ups only give both the players and management a taste of what it’s like on the big stage. 2015 seemed to be an odd year for the Milwaukee Brewers as only one excelled and truly stayed on the roster without many others upping their game. The team seemed to just get unlucky with the injuries to Barrios and Houser and hopefully will see them back on the field in 2016. With more stocked in the system, it’ll be interesting who will be called up as there are no guarantees, but at the very least a rebuilding team always has plenty in the system to look forward to.

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