Milwaukee Brewers have plans to add catcher Jakson Reetz to 40-man roster

The Brewers are planning on adding catcher Jakson Reetz to their 40-man roster, reports Robert Murray of FanSided. A corresponding move will have to be made to make room for the top catching prospect.

Reetz, 26, was a third-round draft pick of the Nationals in 2014, and worked his way to making his major league debut last year. He only got two plate appearances before getting designated for assignment in September 2021, getting one hit.

Baseball America considered Reetz to be one of the top farmhands in the Nationals’ system from 2015 to 2018 and again in 2020 and 2021. He’s long earned praise for his defensive acumen but never managed to hit much in the upper levels of the minors. After signing a minor league deal with the Brewers in the offseason, he’s taken steps forward in that department this year. He’s spent most of 2022 at Double-A, appearing in 64 games and belting 22 home runs in that time. His batting line at that level this year is .281/.392/.636 for a wRC+ of 166. It’s been less eye-popping in 13 Triple-A games, though he did add three more dingers there for a line of .229/.283/.479, wRC+ of 94.

The Brewers have quickly gone from a catching surplus to a deficit in recent days. Not so long ago, they had a trio of Omar Narvaez, Victor Caratini and Pedro Severino all on the active roster, and were getting trade interest on Narvaez. The deadline passed without a deal and the club decided to move on from Severino, designating him for assignment yesterday. However, Narvaez suffered a quad strain last night and landed on the IL today. With the triumvirate whittled down to just Caratini, the club recalled Mario Feliciano today with Reetz seemingly getting into the mix soon. Given that he’s a glove-first catcher who might have suddenly found his hitting stroke, it’s understandable that the Brewers are willing to give him a shot.