The bar for Cooper Pratt to clear upon his call-up was on the floor to begin with, but in his first month in the majors Pratt has done plenty to showcase his sky-high potential.
Pratt has shown flashes of why the Milwaukee Brewers made him the player with the fewest amount of games at Class AAA or above to sign an extension since taking over the everyday shortstop job in June. He’s played sound defense, stolen bases and displayed a knack for delivering a quality at-bat.
And now, he’s showcased his power.
Pratt’s first home run came in his 98th plate appearance of his career and first July 20 as he drove a hanging sweeper from former spring training teammate Freddy Peralta over the left-center wall in an 8-3 victory at American Family Field.
The ball left the bat at 96 mph and just kept on sailing, backspinning its way through the summer Milwaukee air and into the home bullpen for the last of Pratt’s “firsts” and a sigh of relief from an increasingly-beloved member of the clubhouse.
“Man, I felt like it’s been time since Game 1,” Pratt said. “Finally.”
Another pair of singles would come for Pratt against Peralta – who had his seventh outing of 4+ earned runs after having only four such games all of last season – raised Pratt’s slash line to .267/.356/360, which is good for an OPS above the league average. He swiped his seventh bag and has also been worth 3 Defensive Runs Saved at shortstop.
On top of it all is a makeup that the Brewers loved well before giving him an extension.
Put it all together, and you can consider his manager sold on the 21-year-old.
“He knows who he is,” Pat Murphy said.
Right before the all-star break in Pittsburgh, Murphy was asked what the next adjustment would be for Pratt. Now that he had tasted some success, how was the league likely to counter in its ever-changing game of Baseball Darwinism?
“Whatever adjustment the league makes, he can take it,” Murphy said matter-of-factly. “It won’t be like, ‘Oh you can throw him more breaking balls’ because he’ll walk more. ‘Oh, you can throw a fastball up and in.’ Well, which player in the league can’t you throw a fastball up and in to? ‘Oh, you can go strike-to-ball slider with him.’ Well no kidding. Who can’t you throw that to?
“The adjustment that the league makes, it’s not going to be something he can’t handle. If he couldn’t handle the heater he wouldn’t be here. If he couldn’t hit the breaking ball, he wouldn’t be here.”
Pratt is earning himself plenty of fans within his own dugout. While his play has been central to that, so has his off-the-diamond innocent earnestness has done the same.
Take, for instance, an anecdote shared voluntarily by his skipper: Before the second game of a doubleheader in St. Louis, Pratt asked teammates if the Brewers were the home team for the second game, drawing puzzled looks in the clubhouse. The rained-out game, Pratt explained, happened before he was there, so he wasn’t sure if it happened at home or away.
Milwaukee, his teammates were quick to point, has a roof.
“He’s a super competitive kid and his mind’s in the right place,” Murphy said. “That mind is in the right place and it’s a beautiful thing.”
This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: In a month’s time, Cooper Pratt has won over the Milwaukee Brewers
Reporting by Curt Hogg, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel / Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
By Curt Hogg, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel | USA TODAY Network
