Hunter

Morris

No surprises here. Morris is the only one of the bunch that had a shot to win a roster spot given the Brewers’ injury situation at first base, but Alex Gonzalez is expected to fill that void.

Mat Gamel was supposed to be that guy for Milwaukee, but he re-injured his surgically-repaired right knee this weekend and has been ruled out for the year. Morris, 24, batted .303/.357/.563 with 28 home runs and 113 RBI in 136 games last season at Double-A Huntsville. He could carry value in NL-only fantasy leagues. Corey Hart (knee) is expected to return to the Brewers by mid-May.

The longball came in the second inning off of Blake Beavan. Morris could be the favorite to play first base on Opening Day for the Brewers with Corey Hart and Mat Gamel on the shelf, though he’s now picked up just three hits in his first 18 at-bats this spring. Morris batted .303/.357/.563 with 28 home runs and 113 RBI last season at Double-A.

Morris is now on the Brewers’ 40-man roster and protected from December’s Rule 5 Draft. The 25-year-old first baseman has good raw power, but he registered a brutal .310 OBP in 134 games this summer at Triple-A.

With a strong showing in the spring Morris could’ve pushed for a platoon with Adam Lind at first base, though he hit just .182 (2-for-11) with four strikeouts in his limited action. He’ll continue to serve as organizational depth and should find his way to Milwaukee at some point during the season.

Morris was out for a month because of a fractured right arm. The 25-year-old has hit .274/.316/.444 with 10 home runs and 37 RBI in 78 games this season at Triple-A.

The injury will keep him up for most of the rest of the minor league season. Morris has spent all year at Triple-A Nashville, batting .274/.316/.444 with 10 homers and 37 RBI over 78 games.

Morris was added to the 40-man roster over the winter, but the Brewers didn’t show much faith in his ability to compete for the first base job when they brought in Mark Reynolds and Lyle Overbay. The 25-year-old could make his major league debut at some point this season.

Unfortunately, Morris fanned in his other two at-bats and is still hitting a paltry .125 (2-for-16) on the spring. With the Brewers first base job wide open for the taking, Morris needs to string together more days like this in order to seize the opportunity in front of him.

The demotions of Matt Clark and Jason Rogers left Morris without a spot at Triple-A Colorado Springs. Morris, 26, is a .272/.321/.478 hitter in 574 career major league games. He’ll open the 2015 season with the Pirates’ Triple-A affiliate in Indianapolis.