As the Milwaukee Brewers head into spring training, the structure of the franchise continues to change. The old frame, with players like Scooter Gennett, Ryan Braun and Matt Garza are still around, but much of the furniture has been sold and vintage items have been sold off. While all this goes on, the new foundation is being laid out piece by piece.

This season will once again be about moving out the final old pieces so the Brewers can complete the rebuilding process. While it will likely be another 70-75 win season for the Brewers and they'll find themselves near the bottom of the National League Central. But while Brewers fans may not witness a lot of wins this season, there's still plenty of things to get excited about from this organization, both at the major-league and minor-league levels. So let's take a look at the Brewers in 2017 and some of the prospects who could contribute in the future.

The Bats:

Ryan Braun is by far the most recognized player on this team, probably the only player in the Brewers' lineup that the average baseball fan outside of Milwaukee could name. Last season, Brain put up outstanding numbers and it was the first time since 2012 he had a batting average over .300 or 30-plus home runs. It was a great year statistically and it's a bit of a surprise the Brewers didn't find a deal to sell high on him in the offseason, though given he is due $76 million over the next four years and will get $4 million in a mutual buyout in 2021 he has one of the most difficult contracts to move.

It's difficult to see Braun repeating the numbers he put up last season. Braun had a HR/FB percentage near 30 percent in 2016, which greatly surpassed his 20.5 HR/FB percentage in 2015 and 13.8 percent rate in 2014. It's not as if he was getting harder contact on the ball either, as his hard contact percentage dropped two points to 34.4 percent. Last season Braun's groundball rate also jumped from 49.6 percent in 2015 to 55.7 percent in 2016, while his fly ball percentage sank from 31 percent to 25 percent.

Miller Park should keep Braun's home run totals around 25 and he still can get on base at a .340 clip, which puts him in play to steal 10-15 bases. But he is a liability in the outfield with a FanGraphs defensive rating worse than -8 in each of the last three seasons. Braun is already 33 and while the best prospect return may be long gone, Milwaukee can still further improve its farm system if it trades him and it has to be done this offseason, so the team can open the door for Lewis Brinson.

Another one of the intriguing stories to follow in baseball this season will be how Eric Thames performs. The 30-year-old spent the last three seasons in the Korea Baseball Organization, where he combined for a .348 batting average, 64 stolen bases and 124 home runs.

Thames will start at first base for Milwaukee and makes for a nice left-handed power bat, but he is still a major wild card. He hasn't faced major-league pitching since 2012, when he hit a combined nine home runs in 290 plate appearances between the Seattle Mariners and Toronto Blue Jays. There's little way to know to what level his KBO numbers will translate to the majors, but he offers the upside to be a left-handed bat with 25-plus home run production. If it works out, he comes on a team-friendly deal that could make him a nice trade chip and if it doesn't work out, it has no negative impact on the rebuilding Brewers.

The Brewers struck gold when they bought low on Jonathan Villar, in a deal where they only had to give up minor-league pitcher Cy Sneed. Milwaukee handed a starting job to Villar with faith that he would reward it with solid offensive production. He didn't give them solid production, he gave them outstanding production for the shortstop position, with a display of the speed that was always his calling card and a tremendous jump in power numbers.

Villar finished the year with 19 home runs, a dramatic jump from years past when he hit around six to eight home runs per season. The big change for Villar was the jump in hard contact generated on the ball from 24.7 percent in 2015 to 35.1 percent last season. The change to Miller Park also aided Villar's HR/FB rate, which nearly doubled from 2015 to 2016. 

As we head into the 2017 season, Villar will be shifted to second base, where his issues on defense will hurt them less than at shortstop or third base. Villar serves as what the second base position is now, much more of an offensive position where the big producers who struggle defensively wind up. His home run total will likely drop to around 10-14, but he should be able to get on base at a .340-plus clip and steal 40-50 bases.

As Villar shifts to second base, Scooter Gennett will see a shift from second base to a utility role this season. Gennett has spent all but one of his 3,334 innings in the major leagues at second base, but he played shortstop at the start of his minor league career and the club believes he can play some outfield in a pinch. He should be a solid utility player that can bring a little left-handed pop off the bench and steal a few bases.

A look ahead to the Brewers 2017 season shows the second phase of a rebuilding team. This season, Milwaukee fans will see plenty of young players go through the up and down struggles that players face when they first enter the big leagues. While there will be several veterans on this team that will contribute, the focus this year should be on the rookies who will grow and learn from their first taste of the major leagues and give Milwaukee fans a glimpse into the future.

It all starts with Orlando Arcia, who received an extended look last season with 216 plate appearances. He did about what you'd expect from a 22-year-old that got his first taste of major-league pitching, he struggled. Arcia could muster up only a .219/.273/.358 slash line with a 64 wRC+ and .274 wOBA. Arcia struggled to make consistent contact as he struck out in nearly 22 percent of his plate appearances and he only struck hard contact only 25 percent of the time he made contact.

Sky Sox SS Orlando Arcia homers off Sergio Romo. Arcia extends his hitting streak to 14 games, 4th HR of the year. pic.twitter.com/9r8SxY9qIZ

— Matt Johnson (@MattJ_Sports) May 24, 2016

But there's still plenty of reasons for Brewers fans to get excited about Arcia. He has shown plenty of power through his time in the minors, including a 425 ft home run he hit to center field in Sacramento (above). Arcia's always had 45-grade power, which for the shortstop position is more than acceptable given his range and arm that make him a plus defender. The power should be enough to turn into 8-10 home runs with the help of Miller Park.

In addition, Arcia has shown consistent ability to make solid contact across the minor leagues 2017 could likely see him put up Alcides Escobar-like numbers, but fans will see more and more signs as time goes on of someone who can get on base, steal 15-20 bags and play near Gold Glove-caliber defense. Arcia may never be a superstar, but he can be that core piece in the middle infield that all contenders have.

Santana, who the Brewers acquired in the Carlos Gomez deal, likely provides the most intrigue and fun this year for Brewers fans. Santana missed much of last season with upper body injuries and was limited to 281 plate appearances. But when Santana was in the batter's box, people witnessed his great power on display. Santana finished the year with 11 home runs and when he made contact with the ball, he got hard contact nearly 40 percent of the time. 

It's when he makes contact that you see something great, but Santana's game is largely built on swinging for the fences and often he doesn't make contact. Santana struck out in over 32 percent of his plate appearances in 2016, though he mitigated some of that with an 11.4 walk percentage. Defensively, Santana will always be on the lower tier for corner outfielders, but he does have enough arm strength to where you can excuse some of it.

His game is going to be built off his bat and while he will strike out plenty of the time and may only hit in the .240-.260 range, he is a player who can give you 20-25 home runs and steal a few bags as well. He should only continue to grow from here and Milwaukee fans should enjoy seeing a young piece of their future develop and put up numbers this season.

Alongside Santana in the outfield will be Keon Broxton, who probably receives the least amount of recognition amongst outfielders in Milwaukee's system. Broxton is a fairly atypical. It's not often you have center fielders that have strikeout rates over 30 percent and hits for a low average.

His game is very much driven by his ability to drive the ball with force when he makes contact. FanGraphs noted he had the eighth-highest average exit velocity when the ball came off the bat. Broxton registered a fly ball rate over 30 percent last season and that translates perfectly to Miller Park, which should give him the chance to hit 12-17 home runs this season.

But there's even more to Broxton's game that makes him an extremely valuable member of the Brewers. He is also excellent on the base paths, demonstrated by his 41 stolen bases between Milwaukee and Colorado Springs last season. He was extremely efficient to with 27 stole base attempts against major league catchers and only being caught four times.

When you pair it with his ability to draw walks, he drew a walk in nearly 15 percent of his plate appearances last season, he could steal 30 bases in 2017, hit 15 home runs and show more than enough range in center field to make him the most valuable Brewers player in 2017.

Susac will be in competition for the starting catcher spot on opening day and likely battle against Jett Bandy for the gig. While they are both 26, the focus here will go on Susac as he should offer more of the upside at the position. He came over in the Will Smith trade, though the change of scenery didn't have the initial results Milwaukee hoped for. In 20 games between Colorado Springs and Milwaukee, Susac managed just one home run, nine hits and struck out 21 times.

But his power upside surpasses Bandy's and that has to be factored in given the number of games Milwaukee will play in parks that favor hitters. Susac has also shown the ability to draw walks consistently, with a good eye for the strike zone and solid patience that helps him know which pitches to swing at, work the count and draw some free passes. The ability to work the count is needed on a team that has a lot of aggressive hitters.

Pair that with Susac being solid defensively behind the plate and it makes sense for him to be back their on opening day with Bandy serving as a quality backup. But long-term, neither of these guys will be Milwaukee's catcher of the future.

The Arms

The starting rotation will be the rough spot when fans watch the Brewers this season. There's some young, intriguing talent that should have another season of 25-plus starts but a majority of this rotation is unlikely to be in the same spot even two years from now.

Milwaukee's veteran pitcher this season will be Matt Garza, who was limited to just 19 starts last season and wasn't particularly effective. Garza's HR/9, K/9 and BABIP remained fairly consistent to 2015, when he had a 5.63 ERA  and 4.94 FIP. The only real positive change for him was likely fly ball luck as his HR/FB dropped three points to 11.5 percent. Given Garza's declining stuff, with his fastball and slider velocity on the decline, opposing hitters increasingly getting harder contact off his pitches and the amount of hits he gives up, Garza's season could be even worse than 2016. 

Guerra was the Brewers top pitcher by the numbers last season, which is a tremendous accomplishment for a rookie to have the level of success he had. Of course, it's not often a 32-year-old is considered a rookie and it's even more rare when he's able to come in and perform to the level Guerra did. He made 20 starts last season and managed to strike out 100 batters across 121 2/3 innings and his HR/FB rate was a lowly 8.7. percent.

It will almost certainly be the best season Guerra will ever have and one of those strange abnormalities that comes along every few years or so. Guerra was lucky last season, Whether you judge it by his .250 BABIP, which the law of averages tells you will adjust back to the norm of what you'd expect from a pitcher in his 30s whose career revolved around jumping between A-ball and Yucatan Leones for much of his career. His HR/9 is certainly unrepeatable for a pitcher that hitters squared up for a majority of his career and one that has to make half his starts in Miller Park.

He is still under the team-friendly deal and wouldn't be eligible for arbitration until he turns 34 and he showed he can handle some starts, so perhaps Milwaukee can get a prospect for him in return when another team's starter goes down during the season and they need another pitcher at a low cost.

Wily Peralta and Chase Anderson will likely start the year at the back end of Milwaukee's rotation, but at least one will likely be out by the time the calendar turns to July. In their late 20s, Peralta and Anderson have taken different paths to the major leagues but find themselves in the same spots. Neither have shown they can be anything more than No.5 starters for a stretch of time and they are the very definition of replaceable. While Peralta was sharp when he returned from injury with an ERA under 2.5 across 49 innings, the past four seasons have shown that the finish last season was likely an outlier. When Milwaukee's young pitchers in development are ready, there will be rotation spots waiting for them.

The one name in this rotation that fans can get a little excited about is Zach Davies. While Davies may not be the sexy strikeout guy that generates elite K levels and is a darling in fantasy baseball, his skills play very well in Miller Park. In his rookie season, Davies showed off his command consistently throughout the year and kept his walk percentage down to a lowly 5.8 percent. When opponents did make contact against him, they hit .260 and 45.5 percent of balls off that were groundballs.

While Davies will never be a great strikeout guy, he still held  a 7.44 K/9 thanks to a strong cutter and changeup, which he used 33.3 percent of the time to keep hitters off balance, unlike many rookies who come up throwing a large percentage of fastballs and allow hitters to get a much better idea for what the next pitch coming will be. His 12.4 HR/FB, .302 BABIP and low walk rate can all be easily repeatable next season and he should continue to grow into a solid third starter or very good fourth starter for years to come.

The Future

The course of the Brewers future changed on September 21, 2015. Milwaukee went against some conventional wisdom as they looked past his age when it hired 30-year-old David Stearns to be its general manager. Stearns, who graduated from Harvard, previously served as the Houston Astros assistant general manager since 2012 and helped oversee the turnaround of their farm system, something the Brewers hoped he could do with their system.

In his first 15 months on the job, Stearns has delivered on those hopes as he has engineered the turnaround of a farm system that at the end of the 2015 was ranked in the middle of the pack. Stearns got to work quickly as Milwaukee shipped off multiple pieces of its core, a group that included Jean Segura, Will Smith, Jonathan Lucroy, Tyler Thornburg and Jeremy Jeffress in a series of deals that revamped their farm system. 

The acquisitions of prospects like Lewis Brinson, Josh Hader, Isan Diaz, Luis Ortiz, Phil Bickford, Andrew Susac and Mauricio Dubon turned the Brewers farm system from a top-20 collection at the end of the 2015 season into arguably one of the three best minor league systems in all of baseball.`

It all starts at the top with arguably the crown jewel of the Brewers prospects. Outfielder Lewis Brinson, the central piece acquired from the Texas Rangers in the Lucroy trade, is a 22-year-old prospect who enters the 2017 season rated as the unanimous No.1 prospect in Milwaukee's system. On the 20-80 scale, Brinson's power, bat and speed were rated as 60-caliber and received a 55-hit tool and 60-power and speed by MLB.com.

Brinson displayed the early signs of those abilities this season as he climbed the ladder from Double-A Frisco, the Rangers affiliate, where he hit 11 home runs with 11 stolen bases and 14 doubles in 77 games, then made the jump to Triple-A Colorado Springs when he joined the Brewers organization. The jump in competition can pose a challenge for young hitters and we saw more swing-and-miss with the promotion as his K% jumped from 19.6 percent to 22.6 percent, but he showed much better ability to put the ball in play and rack up the hits as his batting average jumped from .237 in Double-A to .382 with a 163 wRC+ and 1.005 in Triple-A Colorado Springs. 

Even if you want to take away part of those numbers due to the thin air in Colorado, Brinson showed he has a tremendous skillset and Milwaukee did not rush him with 23 games to end the season in Triple-A. Now as he heads into the 2017 season, Brinson will receive an extended look in Triple-A where he'll get every day at bats for most of the season and wait in the wings until the Brewers trade Ryan Braun.

Not done yet! @LewisBrinson makes it 5-4 Sounds in the 9th with a single. pic.twitter.com/0dYTzjHaUV

— Sky Sox Baseball (@skysox) August 5, 2016

When Brinson comes to the majors, Milwaukee fans will be in for a treat as few players come around who possess the ability to swipe 25 bases and hit 2- home runs in a season. While it is a lofty projection, Brinson demonstrated each year that his timing and patience at the plate can develop and more power can come with it as his strength and game power continues to develop. Playing half his games at Miller Park would certainly boost his numbers, but 25-25 would be something special as only seven players in the majors did it last season.

Close behind Brinson in terms of importance to this team's future is 22-year-old lefty Josh Hader, who Milwaukee acquired in 2015 when they committed highway robbery in the Carlos Gomez trade. Naturally, the first thing that stands out about Hader is that he's a southpaw with a 60-grade fastball and slider, oh and he also has flowing locks of hair which frankly should boost where he is on prospect lists.

Hader is a consensus top-three prospect in Milwaukee's system in part because when his stuff is on, you have an electric starter that could be the No.2 guy in your rotation. In terms of strikeout ability, Hader knows how to generate the wind power on a consistent basis. He finished with a K/9 over 10.0 in each of the last three seasons in the minor leagues and last season had a K/9 over 11.5 across 25 starts between Double-A and Triple-A or simply put, Hader struck out over 30 percent of the batters he faced last season.

It's a great number and when you just look at that, in addition to the hair to, it's easy to fall head over heels for this lefty. But consistency and command are still major issues. Hader also walked more than 10 percent of the batters he faced last season and held a 12 percent walk rate in Triple-A last season. That would have been the highest BB% amongst qualified pitchers in the major leagues last season and the highest since 2012 when Edinson Volquez walked 13.1 percent of the batters he faced.

As seems to be the standard with many hard-throwing guys in the minors, the secondary pitches are a work in progress. While Hader has the deceptiveness with his unusual delivery, his slider is still inconsistent as he can lose control of it at times when it cuts in too much. When  it's on and the changeup is effective, you have a high-end starter who can rack up 10 strikeouts and generate some weak contact. He still needs more time in the minor leagues, so this year in Triple-A will be critical for his development, but the stuff he shows and his command of the pitches will be more important than the numbers he puts up in Colorado.

Milwaukee added to its farm system when it selected Corey Ray, an outfielder from Louisville. The selection of a 22-year-old college outfielder pushes his likely timetable to be in the major leagues up as long as he continues to develop and perform well. The Brewers challenged him right out of the gate, Ray spent three games in A-ball before the organization bumped him up to High-A Florida.

Across 254 plate appearances with the Fire Frogs, Ray dealt with an adjustment period against a much higher level of competition. He finished the season with a .247/.307/.385 slash line and displayed a glimpse of the power/speed combo he can bring in the future. Ray swiped nine bases, hit 13 doubles, two triples and five home runs with a 50/24 K/BB ratio.

With a 60-grade hit tool and speed, we should see more of that this season with more time and experience in High-A. The power may come along a little slower as Ray needs to cut down on his strikeout rate. What fans will see for certain is Ray's athleticism on display, whether it's on the base paths or in the outfield, it is that athleticism and his plus bat speed that make him such a compelling prospect. While Ray may not match Brinson's power potential, he has the ability to hit 15-20 home runs in his prime and steal 30-plus bases. The future pairing of Brinson and Ray could mean the Brewers have two All Star-caliber outfielders roaming the outfield for years to come.

Brinson, Ray and Hader are in the top tier of Milwaukee's farm system. There is a little drop off to the next tier, but it's still a strong group with infielder Isan Diaz, Mauricio Dubon and pitching prospects Phil Bickford, Luis Ortiz and Brandon Woodruff.

Diaz projects nicely into the new era of second basemen, a position that has become largely about offensive production. While the 20-year-old spent most of last year in Low-A, he showed that his power potential is very legit with 20 home runs, 34 doubles and a .205 isolated power in 587 plate appearances last season. While there's certainly swing-and-miss to his game, evidenced by his 25.2 strikeout percentage and .264 batting average, a left-handed, power bat in the middle infield is something special to have, especially when they can draw the amount of walks that Diaz has shown he has the patience at the plate for.

Ortiz, the 30th overall pick in the 2014 MLB Amateur Draft, came to Milwaukee as part of the of the Lucroy deal. The 21-year-old righty's arsenal consists of a mid-90s fastball and good command of his slider already give him two pitches to work with at the major-league level. His curveball and changeup have shown the ability to miss bats but at a young age, it's understandable that his consistency with them is still a work in progress. But his ability to locate his best pitches is still strong and before he arrived in Double-A with Milwaukee, his walk percentage sat below six percent for the past two seasons.

He's likely a full year away from competing for a rotation spot in spring training, especially given he has been hampered by arm injuries since high school and surpassed 50 innings for the first time last year, but a healthy, developed Ortiz projects to be a fine mid-rotation starter down the line.

Bickford, the San Francisco Giants first round pick in 2015, is much more of the projection prospect. In 120 innings across Low-A and High-A last season, Bickford held a 135/42 K/BB ratio with a 2.93 ERA. Strong numbers from the outside that give reason for hope, but there's also plenty of concerns. Scouts noted that Bickford's fastball just hasn't been what it used to be, sitting now in the high 80s to low 90s and only hitting the mid 90s when he really pushes it. The lack of velocity is one thing for a young pitcher, every millisecond counts at the major league level and if you have a fastball in the low range, hitters have more time to read it and time it up. To make matters worse, Bickford's command disappeared upon his arrival with Milwaukee.

His BB% jumped from 6.2 percent in Low-A to 9.3 percent in High-A Augusta, the Giants affiliate, to an ugly 12.2 percent with Milwaukee's High-A affiliate. It raises major questions, especially when a fastball is supposed to be your primary pitch and your secondary repertoire is also shaky. To make matters worse, Bickford will serve a 50-game suspension to begin the season after he tested positive for drugs for the second time. Reps mean everything for these pitchers and missing a large chunk of the season will further hurt Bickford's development and questionable future. The projection is high, but the likelier scenario is Bickford just never panning out as a starter.

Meanwhile, Brandon Woodruff was throwing balls in the upper 90's & hitting his spots all year long. #Shuckers https://t.co/0EY7W6izSx

— Brewers Prospects (@BrewerProspect) December 2, 2016

Woodruff was the breakout prospect in Milwaukee's system last year as he started the year in High-A and wrecked opposing batters. In eight starts the 23-year-old had a 1.83 ERA, 2.51 FIP and a 49/10 K/BB ratio in 44 1/3 innings. Then he made the jump to Double-A and the higher competition posed little problem for him. Woodruff was once again a wizard at striking batters out as he dominated his 20 starts, striking out nearly 30 percent of the  457 batters he faced. He was also able to keep the walk rate  down to just 6.6 percent, all while compiling a 2.49 FIP. With improving command of his secondary pitches and a good fastball, Woodruff could find himself in Milwaukee's rotation late in the year.

The future of the Brewers could be very bright with some talented outfielder in the wings and potential starters in the infield and rotation making their way through the system. If Milwaukee can deal Ryan Braun, it could further improve the depth and talent in this farm system and give the Brewers a core for the future that can help them contend in the National League once again.

Predictions:

Brewers 2017 Projected Record: 72-90

Top Hitter: Domingo Santana, .258/.351/.485, 28 HRs, 8 SBs, 88 RBIs

Top Pitcher: 30 GS, 3.87 ERA, 151 Ks, Zach Davies

Top Rookie: Lewis Brinson

Players Traded: Ryan Braun, Junior Guerra, Scooter Gennett

All Stats Compiled from FanGraphs