Milwaukee Brewers' season wrap-up minor-league report

PLAYER OF THE WEEK

Jay Feliciano, OF, Helena: The 21-year-old from Arecibo, Puerto Rico, turned in arguably the best single-game offensive performance of the season by a Brewers minor-leaguer on Monday when he went 5 for 6 with two home runs, nine runs batted in and four runs scored to key a 20-13 victory over Missoula. Feliciano had  RBI singles in the first and second, a grand slam in the third, a three-run homer in the sixth and a single in the eighth. For the week, Feliciano hit .333 with three homers and 15 RBI in seven games and for the season he’s hitting .290/12/47.

PITCHER OF THE WEEK

Jordan Yamamoto, RHP, Carolina: Yamamoto put the wraps on a strong 2017 season with a 2-0 week that saw him pitch 14 scoreless innings with 14 strikeouts while allowing 10 hits and just two walks. He ended 9-4 – the nine victories a team high – a 2.51 earned-run average and a WHIP of 1.09 while striking out 113 in 111 innings. Yamamoto, who missed nearly a month early in the season with an injury, won seven of his last eight starts, including his final four. He was a 12th-round pick of the Brewers in 2014 – the same year the team drafted fellow Hawaiian Kodi Medeiros with the 12th overall pick.

JOURNAL SENTINEL’S TOP FIVE PROSPECTS

1. Lewis Brinson, OF, Colorado Springs: Brinson suffered a left-hamstring strain on Aug. 14 and has been sidelined since. He finished the regular season hitting .331/13/48 with an OPS of .962 in a total of 76 games for the Sky Sox. Brinson also made his major-league debut with the Brewers, hitting .106 with two homers and three RBI in 21 games spread over two separate stints.

2. Corey Ray, OF, Carolina: Ray, taken fifth overall by the Brewers in 2016, missed the first two weeks of the season as he completed his recovery from offseason knee surgery. He played in a total of 112 games and hit .238/7/48 with an OPS of .679 and 24 stolen bases. Ray will take part in the Arizona Fall League, which begins in October.

3. Isan Diaz, IF, Carolina: Diaz, the Brewers’ 2016 minor-league player of the year, saw his season end prematurely after breaking the hamate bone in his right hand and undergoing surgery last week. He hit .222/13/54 over 110 games while playing mostly second base.

4. Lucas Erceg, 3B, Colorado Springs: Erceg made up for a slow start with a strong finish to 2017 that included a promotion to Colorado Springs to help bolster the team for the Pacific Coast League playoffs. Erceg hit .251 with 15 homers and a Carolina League-leading 81 RBI in 127 games and was hitting .400 with two RBI in his first three games with the Sky Sox. A second-round pick of the Brewers last season, he’ll also take part in the Arizona Fall League.

5. Luis Ortiz, RHP, Biloxi: Ortiz, acquired along with Brinson from the Texas Rangers last August as part of the trade package for Jonathan Lucroy and Jeremy Jeffress, finished 4-7 with a 4.01 ERA and WHIP of 1.23. He struck out 79 in 94 1/3 innings in a total of 22 games (20 starts), missing some time with a hamstring strain and an illness.

AFFILIATES UPDATE

Class AAA Colorado Springs: The Sky Sox wrapped up their season with an 80-57 record in the American Northern Division, earning their first berth in the PCL playoffs in 20 years. They open against Memphis (St. Louis Cardinals affiliate) on Wednesday in Memphis. Utility men Ivan De Jesus Jr. (.345/7/65) and Nate Orf (.320/9/65) were the team’s best offensive players who didn’t earn call-ups from the Brewers. Taylor Jungmann was terrific with an 8-2 record, 2.59 ERA and WHIP of 1.20 in 17 games (15 starts, 90 1/3 innings). Bubba Derby was also solid after his promotion from Biloxi, going 5-0 with a 3.55 ERA and WHIP of 1.20 in 12 starts (63 1/3 innings).

Class AA Biloxi: The Shuckers went 71-65 overall in the Southern League’s South Division. Outfielder Troy Stokes Jr. hit a combined .251 with 28 doubles, 20 homers and 74 RBI between Carolina and Biloxi and infielder Jake Gatewood a combined .264 with 40 doubles, 15 homers and 64 RBI in 134 games split between Carolina and Biloxi. He’ll take part in the Arizona Fall League also. Aaron Wilkerson went 11-4 with a 3.16 ERA and WHIP of 1.07 in 24 starts for the Shuckers with 143 strikeouts in 142 1/3 innings while Corbin Burnes was a combined 8-3 with a 1.67 ERA and WHIP of 0.95 in 26 starts split between Carolina and Biloxi. He also struck out 140 in 145 2/3 innings.

Advanced Class A Carolina: The Mudcats won their last seven games to finish 73-65 overall in the Carolina League’s Southern Division and just miss out on the playoffs. Outfielder Monte Harrison enjoyed a breakout season after battling serious injuries the previous two years as he hit a combined .272 with 28 doubles, 21 homers and 67 RBI to go along with 27 stolen bases and an OPS of .832 in 122 games between Wisconsin and Carolina. Cody Ponce went 10-9 with a 3.14 ERA and WHIP of 1.23 in 25 starts split between Carolina and Biloxi. Nate Griep led the Carolina League with 30 saves.

Class A Wisconsin: The Timber Rattlers finished 59-79, last in the Midwest League’s Western Division and second-worst out of 16 teams. First-round pick Keston Hiura – taken ninth overall by the Brewers in June – provided some excitement when he joined the team in late July, and he hit .333 with 11 doubles, 15 RBI and an OPS of .850 in 27 games. He also played three games at second base – a big deal since he didn’t play in the field his junior season at UC-Irvine because of a serious elbow injury. Adrian Houser pitched a total of nine innings in three games at the tail end of the season as he continued his comeback from Tommy John surgery.

Advanced Rookie Helena: The Brewers are 27-44 overall, worst in the Pioneer League with the remainder of the week to go in the season. Tristen Lutz, K.J. Harrison and Chad McClanahan are among the high-profile position players who were high picks of the Brewers in the last two years. Gilbert Lara suffered a broken ankle in his first game on July 20 and underwent season-ending surgery.