Brewers sign veteran INF Blanco to Minors deal
11 non-roster invites also include '19 first-round Draft pick Small
MILWAUKEE -- The Brewers signed veteran infielder Andres Blanco to a Minor League contract on Friday and extended him a non-roster invitation to Major League Spring Training camp along with 10 other players from Milwaukee¡¯s own system.
The prospects invited to big league camp included 2019 first-round Draft pick Ethan Small, a left-hander picked 28th overall out of Mississippi State. He ranks fifth on MLB Pipeline¡¯s list of Milwaukee¡¯s top prospects.
The other invitees were pitchers Clayton Andrews (No. 30 Brewers prospect), Zack Brown (No. 3), Thomas Jankins, Drew Rasmussen (No. 12), Miguel Sanchez and Aaron Wilkerson; catchers Mario Feliciano (No. 8) and Payton Henry (No. 15); and third baseman Lucas Erceg (No. 14).
They bring to 20 the total of non-roster invitees to camp, which opens Feb. 12 when Brewers pitchers and catchers formally report to American Family Fields of Phoenix.
The latest outside addition is Blanco, a veteran of parts of 10 Major League seasons who last played in the big leagues in 2017. He played for the Brewers¡¯ Triple-A affiliate in 2018. Last season, Blanco posted an .807 OPS for the Braves¡¯ top affiliate at Triple-A Gwinnett, and he re-joins the Brewers in the wake of news that infielder Luis Urías will miss eight weeks following surgery for a broken hamate bone in his left hand.