Ep. 2 of new series gives look inside Spring Training

PHOENIX -- The second installment of the Brewers’ prospect documentary series features a prominent guest star having a tough day at the poker table.

“That’s going to be hilarious,” Sal Frelick said over the weekend after returning from the World Baseball Classic. “We got after one of our buddies, [infield prospect] Tyler Black. He had a really bad haircut and we just went after him.

“And they put it all in.”

Black and fellow guest stars like Zavier Warren fit right into the docuseries, which is chronicling Frelick, Joey Wiemer, Garrett Mitchell and Brice Turang -- the Nos. 2-5-ranked Brewers prospects per MLB Pipeline -- in their first big league camp together. This is the second of three weekly installments during Spring Training, which are available on MLB.com as they’re released.

Future episodes are expected to come during the regular season, with more footage of top Brewers prospect Jackson Chourio.

“They did a great job,” said Frelick, who watched the debut episode while playing for Italy in the WBC. “That first episode just scratched the surface of what they filmed.”

Episode 2 follows the players off the field, including Frelick and Wiemer at their shared Spring Training home. There’s also a segment at the dog park with Mitchell and his wife, professional softball player Haley Cruse-Mitchell, who is already well-known as a social media star.

“At first it felt like we were being filmed for a reality television show,” Cruse-Mitchell said. “We were trying to figure out how to be normal. But I think I’ve forced Garrett in front of a camera enough times that he was pretty natural at it. He’s a much more private guy than I am, so that’s a little tough to navigate at times. I overshare everything and I’ve had to reel it back for his sake.

“But this was cool. It was cool to see him open up for the documentary a little bit and show who he is. He’s such a cool guy, and so loved by everyone.”

Cruse-Mitchell has gotten to know the other prospects in recent years as they advance together through Milwaukee’s farm system. Mitchell was the first to make it to the Majors last August, a callup that came as a big surprise.

“At least it was a surprise to me,” Cruse-Mitchell said. “I had made up in my mind that it was going to be [2023]. I was visiting my friend in Colorado who I hadn’t seen when I got a call from him that he was going to the Majors. I just said, ‘Are you joking?’ Then it was all a whirlwind. It was so, so cool to be a part of.

“These guys are all so tight-knit, and watching them all interact is so much fun. It’s constant entertainment. That kind of talk is what gets you through the tough times, because it’s such a hard sport. They have such a bond already coming up through the Minors. I’m excited to see it go to the next level.”