Brewers’ deals, Draft result in star-studded instructs roster

After a season spent building towards the future, the Milwaukee Brewers are creating quite the buzz this fall with their strong crop of talent in instructional league.

Comprised of 13 of Milwaukee’s Top 30 Prospects, including three players ranked in the Top 100, the Brewers’ instructional league roster reads more like an organizational All-Star list, standing out for its impressive blend of both high-end talent and depth.

“It’s a really deep group here this year, and it made it a challenge for us to put together the roster,” Brewers farm director Tom Flanagan said. “There were guys in our system who normally we would want to have down here, but you have to draw the line somewhere just to make sure everyone can get their work in.”

Yet many of the Brewers’ players participating in camp this fall are new to the organization, with some having come over in one of several Trade Deadline blockbusters, and even more from the organization’s 2016 Draft.

“We don’t have a lot of history with some guys because of the trades we made this year, so we’re still trying to figure them out and assess what we have,” said Flanagan.

Due to their influx of talent in the past year, the Brewers are placing a greater emphasis on doing more off-the-field work with players this fall. Specifically, there are a lot more classroom sessions this year, especially for position players, during which players and staff form small groups and basically have a Q&A for 45 minutes about a particular topic.

“We want to get these new guys into the system and get them educated about why they’re here and what we’re trying to do,” Flanagan stated. “Starting pro ball can be a blur for young players, so our goal is slow things down and let them get acclimated to the Brewers.”

Bickford impressing new organization

Selected by San Francisco in the first round (No. 18 overall) of the 2015 Draft, Phil Bickford posted a 2.69 ERA with 105 strikeouts and 27 walks in 93 2/3 innings between Class A Augusta and Class A Advanced San Jose before the Giants sent him and Andrew Susac to Milwaukee on Aug. 1 in exchange for left-handed reliever Will Smith. Named the Brewers’ No. 5 prospect upon joining the organization, the 21-year-old righty finished his campaign by offering club officials a glimpse of his future with five impressive starts in the Class A Advanced Florida State League.

“There …

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