The Milwaukee Brewers are reshaping their franchise with an injection of youth and prospects.
Every Thursday for the rest of the season, FOX Sports Wisconsin will take a closer look at some specific young players in Milwaukee's farm system -- as well as noting others who might be stepping up -- measuring, highlighting and evaluating their progress.
This is the 2nd edition of the 2017 Young Brewers Tracker.
Lewis Brinson (age 22/Triple-A)
Last week: 4 games, 18 AB, 5 H, 1 2B, 7 R, 1 RBI, 1 SB, 2 BB, 4 K, .278 BA.
Season: 21 games, 89 AB, .326 BA, .382 OBP, .528 SLG, .910 OPS, 6 2B, 0 3B, 4 HR, 22 R, 13 RBI, 4 SB, 8 BB, 24 K.
Notable: Brinson had a pair of two-hit games last week, giving him seven multiple-hit games on the season (or in one-third of all he's played).
Ryan Cordell (Age 25/Triple-A)
Last week: 4 games, 19 AB, 8 H, 1 2B, 1 HR, 7 R, 6 RBI, 0 SB, 2 BB, 1 K, .421 BA.
Season: 25 games, 104 AB, .308 BA, .381 OBP, .548 SLG, .929 OPS, 8 2B, 1 3B, 5 HR, 24 R, 20 RBI, 3 SB, 10 BB, 21 K.
Notable: Cordell had three multiple-hit games in his four appearances last week, including a three-hit game at Oklahoma City on May 5.
Isan Diaz (age 20/Single-A)
Last week: 7 games, 25 AB, 6 H, 1 2B, 4 R, 1 RBI, 2 SB, 3 BB, 9 K, .240 BA.
Season: 33 games, 126 AB, .278 BA, .338 OBP, .452 SLG, .790 OPS, 7 2B, 0 3B, 5 HR, 18 R, 21 RBI, 5 SB, 13 BB, 35 K.
Notable: After going on a power spree, Diaz has just one extra-base hit in his last eight games (33 AB).
Mauricio Dubon (Age 22/Double-A)
Last week: 8 games, 29 AB, 9 H, 2 2B, 4 R, 2 RBI, 5 SB, 3 BB, 2 K, .310 BA.
Season: 33 games, 127 AB, .283 BA, .341 OBP, .346 SLG, .687 OPS, 5 2B, 0 3B, 1 HR, 12 R, 9 RBI, 16 SB, 10 BB, 18 K.
Notable: Dubon stole four bases in a May 4 doubleheader vs. Montgomery, including three in the second game. Dubon leads the Southern League in stolen bases with only one other player in the league in double figures in steals (teammate Johnny Davis, who has 10). He has been caught just three times. Dubon also has a four-game hitting streak, going 7 for 18 in that span.
Lucas Erceg (age 22/Single-A)
Last week: 5 games, 22 AB, 4 H, 1 2B, 2 R, 1 RBI, 0 SB, 0 BB, 6 K, .182 BA.
Season: 28 games, 117 AB, .214 BA, .252 OBP, .308 SLG, .560 OPS, 5 2B, 0 3B, 2 HR, 14 R, 10 RBI, 2 SB, 5 BB, 23 K.
Notable: Erceg has a hit in six of his last eight games, but just one two-hit game in the bunch.
Jake Gatewood (Age 21/Single-A)
Last week: 7 games, 26 AB, 8 H, 2 2B, 4 R, 5 RBI, 1 SB, 2 BB, 8 K, .308 BA.
Season: 33 games, 119 AB, .328 BA, .420 OBP, .546 SLG, .967 OPS, 11 2B, 0 3B, 5 HR, 24 R, 16 RBI, 3 SB, 19 BB, 38 K.
Notable: Owns a 20-game hit streak dating back to April 21 (he happened to go hitless in the three games previous). Gatewood's BABIP (batting average on balls in play) is an incredible .434. His walk percentage is 13.0 percent, which is well above his career average of 6.2 percent.
Josh Hader (age 23/Triple-A)
Last week: 1 game (1 start), 0-0, 5 IP, 3 H, 3 R, 3 BB, 8 K
Season: 7 games (7 starts), 3-2, 4.54 ERA, 35.2 IP, 26 H, 8 HR, 22 BB, 32 K, .208 OBA, 1.35 WHIP.
Notable: Threw a season-high 91 pitches vs. Fresno on May 8. Hader's eight strikeouts were a season high and the most since he had 12 at Round Rock last Aug. 21.
Jacob Nottingham (age 22/Double-A)
Last week: 5 games, 17 AB, 6 H, 4 2B, 3 R, 2 RBI, 0 SB, 1 BB, 6 K, .353 BA.
Season: 25 games, 80 AB, .188 BA, .293 OBP, .300 SLG, .593 OPS, 7 2B, 1 3B, 0 HR, 7 R, 6 RBI, 3 SB, 6 BB, 20 K.
Notable: Nottingham is on a five-game hitting streak and has doubles in each of his last three games. He raised his OPS more than 100 points in the last week.
Luis Ortiz (age 21/Double-A)
Last week: 1 game (1 start), 1-0, 5 IP, 5 H, 1 R, 1 BB, 6 K
Season: 5 games (5 starts), 1-3, 3.33 ERA, 24.1 IP, 18 H, 5 HR, 6 BB, 26 K, .205 OBA, 0.99 WHIP.
Notable: After missing two starts due to right hamstring tightness, Ortiz won his first game of the season May 6 vs. Montgomery.
Brett Phillips (Age 22/Triple-A)
Last week: 5 games, 18 AB, 5 H, 1 2B, 1 HR, 6 R, 7 RBI, 1 SB, 6 BB, 8 K, .278 BA.
Season: 25 games, 92 AB, .304 BA, .390 OBP, .565 SLG, .956 OPS, 6 2B, 0 3B, 6 HR, 19 R, 26 RBI, 1 SB, 13 BB, 34 K.
Notable: Had three hits and four RBI vs. Fresno on May 8 and is fourth in Pacific Coast League in RBI.
Corey Ray (age 21/Single-A)
Last week: 6 games, 25 AB, 6 H, 1 2B, 1 R, 4 RBI, 1 SB, 4 BB, 10 K, .240 BA.
Season: 21 games, 91 AB, .242 BA, .300 OBP, .374 SLG, .674 OPS, 10 2B, 1 3B, 0 HR, 9 R, 13 RBI, 7 SB, 8 BB, 32 K.
Notable: The good news is Ray had two hits and here RBI on May 7 vs. Fresno, but the bad news is he struck out multiple times in four of the five games last week.
Others: 1B Garrett Cooper (6th round, 2013) hit 3 home runs last week and is now batting .333/.376/.588 with 11 doubles, 6 HR, 22 runs and 31 RBI. … Veteran infielder Eric Sogard is on fire at Colorado Springs, batting .341/.422/.534 with 28 runs and 17 RBI. In his past four games, Sogard is 10 for 16. … Biloxi C Dustin Houle (8th round, 2011) was 5 for 13 (.385) with 2 doubles last week and is hitting .311/.415/.378 in 14 games. … RHP Angel Ventura tossed 6 scoreless innings and now has a 2.33 ERA in 27 IP for Biloxi. … CF Trent Clark (1st round, 2015) was 8 for 24 (.333) last week with a homer for Carolina, to raise his season batting average to .250. .. Mudcats OF Carlos Belonis had a 4-for-4 game with 2 steals vs. Fresno on May 7. … RHP Corbin Burnes (4th round, 2016) tossed 12 2/3 scoreless innings for Carolina in two starts. His ERA sits at 1.13 over 40 IP. … Wisconsin RHP Trey Supak allowed five hits and two runs over 10.2 IP in his two starts last week, walking just three while whiffing 20.
Statistics courtesy milb.com
Dave Heller is the author of the book Ken Williams: A Slugger in Ruth's Shadow as well as Facing Ted Williams - Players From the Golden Age of Baseball Recall the Greatest Hitter Who Ever Lived and As Good As It Got: The 1944 St. Louis Browns
