Versatile Brice Turang Nearly Ready For Milwaukee

Having already logged time in 52 Cactus League games, Brice Turang has been one of the Brewers’ more familiar spring training faces since 2019.

Turang enters camp in 2023 in a much different spot than previous years. Now, the 23-year-old is a member of the 40-man roster and in position to break camp with the major league club.

The Brewers drafted Turang 21st overall in 2018 out of high school in Corona, Calif. He has nearly 3,000 minor league innings at shortstop under his belt.

With Willy Adames already entrenched at that position in Milwaukee, second base and third base are Turang’s most likely MLB entry points.

“Brice has put himself in a good position to come to major league camp this spring and compete,” Brewers vice president of minor league operations Tom Flanagan said. “I’m confident if the need arises and he is called upon, Brice would be able to step into a major league role and perform if needed.”

Milwaukee’s December trade of Kolten Wong to the Mariners left a major void at second base, with Abraham Toro—acquired along with Jesse Winker from Seattle for Wong—Luis Urias and Turang in the running for playing time there.

The Brewers were confident enough in Turang’s ability to play second base that he made just seven starts there for Triple-A Nashville in 2022.

More notable were the two new positions he added: third base (eight starts) and center field (13). Turang will arrive in Milwaukee as a versatile player.

A career-best year with the Sounds that saw him hit .286/.360/.412 with 13 home runs and 34 stolen bases in 131 games only solidified Milwaukee’s belief that Turang is ready.

“Brice has performed at a young age for every level along the way, and has been a leader on his teams at every stop,” Flanagan said. “We’re very excited for what’s to come and pumped to have him in the organization.”

MICROBREWS

— No. 8 prospect Tyler Black, who fractured his left thumb in the Arizona Fall League, should be fully recovered and ready for the start of spring training, according to Flanagan.

— Shortstop Freddy Zamora, the Brewers’ second-round pick in 2020 who had surgery for a left shoulder subluxation suffered while swinging last May, is also expected to be ready.

— Considering Black missed a large chunk of time in 2022 with a fractured scapula and Zamora has played just 116 games to this point—he missed much of 2021 recovering from a knee injury suffered in college—both players need all the at-bats they can get in 2023.

— In the wake of their December trade for William Contreras, the Brewers lost former top catching prospect Mario Feliciano on waivers to the Tigers.

Milwaukee had hoped Feliciano would clear and return to the organization, but with fast-rising Jeferson Quero likely to reach Double-A at some point in 2023, the loss of Feliciano isn’t considered major.

“We felt (catcher) was more a position of strength as we spent more time on it,” Brewers general manager Matt Arnold said. “We were hopeful he’d sneak through, but somebody claimed him, and that’s part of the business.”