Brewers sign Jacob Hurtubise to a Minor League contract

The Brewers signed Jacob Hurtubise to a minor league deal earlier this week, according to the outfielder MLB.com profile page. Hurtubise has been assigned to Triple-A Nashville and his contract does not appear to include an invitation to the Brew Crew’s big league spring camp.

Hurtubise, an undrafted free agent who began his pro career by signing with the Reds in 2020, has played in 41 MLB games, all with Cincinnati over the past two seasons. The Reds designated Hurtubise for assignment in June, setting off a swirl of trades that saw the outfielder being claimed by the Mariners, released outright and released in July, after which Hurtubise joined the Astros on a minor league deal before being released again in September.

The 28-year-old Hurtubise will now look to return to the Show on another NL Central team. Even after the trade Isaac Collins to the Royals earlier this winter, the Brewers still have a decent amount of outfield depth in addition to starters Jackson Chourio, Garrett MitchellAnd Sal Frelick. Hurtubise joins Akil Baddoo, Brandon LockridgeAnd Greg Jones as outfielders who provide depth behind the fourth outfielder Blake Perkins. While Hurtubise still has a minor league option remaining, the fact that he only plays in the outfield could hinder his roster prospects as the Brewers prefer more versatile players on their bench.

Hurtubise has plenty of experience at all three outfield positions, and his high speed and baserunning ability make him a pinch-running candidate. Hurtubise has stolen 130 bases in 153 attempts during his minor league career while hitting .260/.411/.324 over 576 plate appearances at the Triple-A level. This on-base skill hasn’t manifested itself during the small sample size of Hurtubise’s time in the majors, as he hit just .167/.291/.212 over 83 PA for the Reds.