Alex

Hall

Australia finishes second in Pool B play at 3-1 and will take on Cuba in the quarterfinals. Because Omar Narvaez was on the COVID-19 IL, Hall, a switch-hitting catcher, spent one day in the majors with the Brewers last season, though he didn’t get into a game and was bumped from the 40-man roster soon thereafter. He went home to Australia afterwards and hit .360/.440/.626 in 38 games for Perth. He has two homers in four games in the World Baseball Classic after totaling just eight in 174 career games in the minors.

Hall was summoned from the lower minors to serve as emergency catching depth last week and didn’t wind up appearing in a game. The 22-year-old backstop went unclaimed on waivers after being designated for assignment and will remain with the Brewers as extra organizational catching depth.

With Omar Narvaez currently on the COVID-19 injured list, the Brewers gave Hall a shot to serve as the backup catcher for a day -- possibly because they couldn’t get Alex Jackson there in time. The 22-year-old backstop did not appear in the one game that he was on the roster for. He should pass through waivers unclaimed and continue to function as organizational catching depth for the Brewers.

You don’t often see players called up from Low-A to the highest level, but Hall is basically going to be an emergency backstop after Omar Narváez was placed on the COVID-19 IL. The 22-year-old from Australia has hit well so far at the Low-A level, but assuredly will only be up for a couple of days -- at most -- with the club.