PHOENIX -- Brewers manager Pat Murphy has no doubt that the club's top prospect, Jackson Chourio, will handle the high beams of heightened scrutiny in the wake of his recent long-term contract.

His reasoning?

¡°He cares more about being good than he does about being rich,¡± Murphy said.

At 20, Chourio is trending toward both.

Chourio enters the season as the Brewers¡¯ presumed starter in center field and as the No. 2 prospect by MLB Pipeline, and the front office is all in, having signaled their belief with an eight-year, $82 million contract announced Dec. 4 at the Winter Meetings.

The deal, which included a $2 million signing bonus and a 2024 base salary of $2 million, was the largest given to a player with no Major League experience.

¡°The truth is, the money is not going to change me,¡± Chourio said through interpreter Daniel de Mondesert. ¡°If it does change me in any way, it is going to change me for the better. There is a sense of relaxation there for sure. You feel good in having the ability to take care of my family. I don¡¯t feel it as pressure so much as as a blessing.

¡°Now it is time to show what I am able to do out on the field and to get to work.¡±

He is on the roster for the Brewers' Spring Breakout game against Kansas City on Sunday.

Chourio showed plenty in 2023.

He is coming off a Minor League season in which he slashed .282/.338/.467 with 22 homers, 43 stolen bases and 91 RBIs at two levels. All but six games were spent at Double-A Biloxi.

Because of that r¨¦sum¨¦, Chourio could be the most-heralded National League prospect since Atlanta outfielder Ronald Acu?a Jr., another five-tool player, and the two had scouting grades that are remarkably similar.

Chourio enters the season with an overall scouting grade of 65 on the Major League 20/80 scale, according to MLB Pipeline. Scouts graded his power at 65 and his running ability at 70, both of which are quite a bit above the Major League average.

Acu?a¡¯s power was graded a 65, and his running was graded a 70 in 2018. Seattle¡¯s Julio Rodr¨ªguez had an overall grade of 60 in 2020.

Chourio has heard the comparisons.

¡°Obviously you see what they¡¯ve done and the example they¡¯ve set and try to follow in their footsteps,¡± Chourio said. ¡°I try to follow that example to the best of my ability and create my own path.¡±

Chourio took a seven-game hitting streak into a Cactus League game against Arizona on Friday that was cancelled because of inclement weather, extending the streak with a ground-ball single the day before.

¡°[I¡¯m] gaining confidence each day as the days go on and feeling more comfortable by the day,¡± he said of his spring experience. ¡°Just trying to keep it going. Definitely trying to be a little more patient at the plate. That has helped out.¡±

He capped a busy offseason by hitting .379 with a .984 OPS for Zulia in the Venezuelan Winter League.

¡°His offensive potential ¡­ he has huge upside," Murphy said. "And so does his base running and his mentality. How he handles everything, we¡¯re just watching it happen and trying to encourage him and lead him in the right direction.¡±

Teammate Christian Yelich understands the outsized expectations that come with a big contract. He signed a seven-year extension worth $188.5 million in 2020, two years after being named NL MVP and the year after he was the MVP runner-up.

His advice: be yourself.

¡°Obviously everybody else is going to have higher expectations for you, but as a player, you have high expectations for yourself anyway,¡± Yelich said. ¡°You always hold yourself to a high standard. Whatever anybody else thinks is what they think.¡±