Brewers’ top pick outhits concerns
As UCLA’s leadoff man the past two seasons, Garrett Mitchell put together a body of work that was impressive enough to lead the Milwaukee Brewers to select him 20th overall in Wednesday night’s amateur draft.
Many had the left-handed-hitter projected as going in the top 10, so the early take is the Brewers got a gem who dropped further than expected.
But why the slide?
The one consistent knock on the 6foot-3, 215-pounder’s game was that he didn’t show consistent power for the Bruins, slugging just six homers -- all as a sophomore in 2019 -- in two-plus seasons.
“It’s funny, because people want to knock the power numbers, (saying) they’re not there. ‘He has the BP pop but it doesn’t translate into games.’ ” Mitchell, already sporting a Brewers cap, told reporters in a Zoom call shortly after being picked.
“But that was never the job Coach (John) Savage asked of me, being in the leadoff spot. It was to put pressure on teams, to get on base, to cause havoc and help score runs, and help win games in whatever way I could. He would tell you I did the best job I possibly could at that.
“Trying to hit home runs is a different approach at the plate. My goal has been to be a line-drive hitter, gap to gap, use the big part of the field and let my speed take care of the rest.”
Despite the lack of homers, Mitchell compiled a .327 average, an on-base percentage of .393 and slugged .478 in 121 games at UCLA after turning down a chance to sign with the Oakland A’s as a 14th-round pick in 2017.
He was sitting at .355/.425/.484 through 15 games this past season before the COVID-19 pandemic shut down all collegiate sports.
Mitchell is also a Type 1 diabetic, a factor that may well have scared off some teams. The Brewers were unable to sign their 2010 first-round pick, righthander Dylan Covey, after learning he was a Type 1 diabetic in his post-draft physical, but Mitchell, 21, was diagnosed as a child.
“A lot of these teams, it wasn’t that I couldn’t play or I’m not good at what I do but it came down to diabetes -- what teams want to deal with it, what teams are comfortable with it and what team is willing to take that chance,” said Mitchell, who had familiarity with the Brewers after playing for their Area Code and fall league teams as a youngster.
“I couldn’t be more thankful that it was the Milwaukee Brewers. They know me. They know I’m going to work my butt off every single day and try to help this team win a World Series.”
Mitchell made it clear he doesn’t view his medical condition as a hindrance.
“Personally, I don’t really see it as a challenge,” he said. “Obviously, there are a lot of people who do and who questioned whether it would be a factor down the road in the future. But I took it as an advantage because I know how my body works.
“I know what I need to do to make it feel good. I know the amount of rest I need to be ready to play every day, the amount of nutrients that make me feel the best every day. That’s an advantage because a lot of people don’t know what their bodies need, but I can put myself in the best situation every single day when I go out on the field.
“It’s not a challenge for me. It’s my everyday life, and to be honest, I forget that I’m diabetic.”
Brewers vice president of domestic scouting Tod Johnson indicated the belief is Mitchell will be able to remain in center field as a professional and also projects as a top-of-the-lineup hitter.
When and where that will be remains to be seen, with Major League Baseball and the players’ association still trying to hash out an agreement to start play at the big-league level. The overriding belief is that there won’t be a minor-league season until 2021.
“As of now, I do not (know),” Mitchell said. “My phone has not stopped vibrating in the last few hours, but I have no idea what the plan is. Whatever they want me to do, I’m going to be ready to go. The only thing I can tell you is I’m ready, whatever it’s going to be.
“It’s a little bit of a challenge because when you’re not out there every day, it’s not the same, staying in shape on a dayto-day basis. I treated this time as if it were an offseason. Whatever that time is, you have to keep yourself prepared and ready to go. More like a springtraining scenario.
“I am confident the work I put in until today, I’ll be ready to go from the jump. I just want to get back to baseball. We’ve got to get the pros back out there first.”
Mitchell was Milwaukee’s first No. 20 pick and the first outfielder taken by the team in the first round since Trent Clark (15th) and Corey Ray (5th) were taken in the 2015 and ’16 drafts, respectively.
The slot value at No. 20 is $3,242,900, and Mitchell’s agent is Scott Boras.
“That’s the goal,” Mitchell said when asked if he thought he’d ultimately sign. “I hope so.”