The Arizona Complex League Brewers are a Minor League Baseball team of the

Arizona Complex League The Arizona Complex League (ACL) is a rookie-level Minor League Baseball league that operates in and around Phoenix, Arizona, since 1988. Prior to 2021, it was known as the Arizona League (AZL). Along with the Florida Complex League (FCL), it f ...

(ACL) and a Rookie-level affiliate of the

Milwaukee Brewers The Milwaukee Brewers are an American professional baseball team based in Milwaukee. They compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) National League Central, Central division. The Brewers are named for t ...

. The are located in

Phoenix, Arizona Phoenix ( ; nv, Hoozdo; es, Fénix or , yuf-x-wal, Banyà:nyuwá) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of cities and towns in Arizona#List of cities and towns, most populous city of the U.S. state of Arizona, with 1 ...

, and play their home games at American Family Fields of Phoenix. Milwaukee fields two squads in the Arizona Complex League: the ACL Brewers Blue and ACL Brewers Gold. Established as members of the

Arizona League The Arizona Complex League (ACL) is a rookie-level Minor League Baseball league that operates in and around Phoenix, Arizona, since 1988. Prior to 2021, it was known as the Arizona League (AZL). Along with the Florida Complex League (FCL), it f ...

(AZL) in its inaugural 1988 season, the Arizona League Brewers played at

Compadre Stadium Compadre Stadium was a stadium located in Chandler, Arizona. It was the spring training home of the Milwaukee Brewers from 1986 to 1997 and the home field of the Chandler Diamondbacks of the Arizona Fall League from 1992 to 1994. The ballpark ...

until 1995. Milwaukee did not operate a team in the league from 1996 through 2000, but it returned to play in 2001 at American Family Fields of Phoenix, then known as Maryvale Baseball Park. With the reorganization of Minor League Baseball in 2021, the AZL Brewers became the ACL Brewers after their league was renamed. The Brewers have won four ACL championships, including three consecutive titles in their first three seasons and most recently in 2010.

History

The Arizona League Brewers were one of four teams to compete in the inaugural

(AZL) season of 1988. The

short-season Class A Short Season (officially Short-Season A) was a level of play in Minor League Baseball in the United States from 1965 through 2020. In the hierarchy of minor league classifications, it was below Triple-A, Double-A, Class A-Advanced (cre ...

Rookie classification league was created to serve as a developmental league, similar to extended spring training, specifically for recently drafted high school and

Latin America Latin America or * french: Amérique Latine, link=no * ht, Amerik Latin, link=no * pt, América Latina, link=no, name=a, sometimes referred to as LatAm is a large cultural region in the Americas where Romance languages — languages derived f ...

n players. The Brewers played their home games at

Chandler, Arizona Chandler is a city in Maricopa County, Arizona, United States, and a suburb in the Phoenix-Mesa-Chandler Metropolitan Statistical Area (MSA). It is bordered to the north and west by Tempe, to the north by Mesa, to the west by Phoenix, to the ...

. This was the

spring training Spring training is the preseason in Major League Baseball (MLB), a series of practices and exhibition games preceding the start of the regular season. Spring training allows new players to try out for Schedule (workplace), roster and position spo ...

site of the

, who operated the team. The AZL Brewers' first game was a 13–11 victory over the

AZL Mariners/Red Sox The Arizona Complex League Mariners are a Rookie-level affiliate of the Seattle Mariners, competing in the Arizona Complex League of Minor League Baseball. The team plays its home games at Peoria Sports Complex in Peoria, Arizona. The team is com ...

on June 23, 1988. Managed by

Alex Taveras Alejandro Antonio Betances Taveras (born October 9, 1953) is a former infielder in Major League Baseball. He played in 35 games over three seasons (1976, 1982–1983) for the Houston Astros and Los Angeles Dodgers. Alex has three sons Alex jr ...

, the Brewers won the first Arizona League championship with a league-best 40–18 record. Jeff Nate led the Brewers to a second AZL title in 1989, topping the league with a 40–15 mark. They won a third consecutive AZL championship in 1990 with a league-best 36–17 record under the returning Taveras. The Brewers posted winning records in each of their next five seasons, but did not finish atop the league standings. Following the 1995 season, Milwaukee moved their Rookie affiliation from Chandler to the

Ogden Raptors The Ogden Raptors are an independent baseball team of the Pioneer League, which is not affiliated with Major League Baseball (MLB) but is an MLB Partner League. They are located in Ogden, Utah and play their home games at Lindquist Field. Pitche ...

of the Pioneer League in

Ogden, Utah Ogden is a city in and the county seat of Weber County, Utah, United States, approximately east of the Great Salt Lake and north of Salt Lake City. The population was 87,321 in 2020, according to the US Census Bureau, making it Utah's eighth ...

, to escape Arizona's summer heat and provide their players with better working conditions. They returned to operations in the Arizona League in 2001. From this point, they played their home games at Maryvale Baseball Park (now called American Family Fields of Phoenix), Milwaukee's spring training site since 1998. MaryvaleBaseballPark

Unlike AZL Brewers teams from the initial 1988 to 1995 run, those in the second stretch starting in 2001 posted losing records through 2009. Despite the team's results, two Brewers were selected for the Arizona League Most Valuable Player Award during this period:

Hernán Iribarren Hernán Alcides Iribarren (born June 29, 1984) is a Venezuelan professional baseball former infielder and current coach. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Milwaukee Brewers and Cincinnati Reds. Minor league career Iribarren wa ...

in 2004 and

Lorenzo Cain Lorenzo Lamar Cain (born April 13, 1986) is an American professional baseball center fielder who is a free agent. He has played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Milwaukee Brewers and the Kansas City Royals. The Brewers drafted him in the ...

in 2005. In the 2010 season, manager Tony Diggs led the team to win the Central Division title and a berth in the AZL's limited playoffs. The Brewers defeated the

AZL Rangers The Arizona Complex League Rangers are a Rookie-level affiliate of the Texas Rangers, competing in the Arizona Complex League of Minor League Baseball. The team plays its home games at Surprise Stadium in Surprise, Arizona. The team is composed ...

in a single semifinal game before winning the championship game versus the AZL Reds to earn their fourth league crown. Diggs won the league's Manager of the Year Award. After this success in 2010, the Brewers returned to posting losing records each season from 2011 to 2016. Rafael Neda's 2017 Brewers qualified for the playoffs by winning the First Half Central Division title, but they were eliminated by the

AZL Cubs The Arizona Complex League Cubs are a Rookie-level affiliate of the Chicago Cubs, competing in the Arizona Complex League of Minor League Baseball. The team plays it home games at Sloan Park in Mesa, Arizona. The team is composed mainly of player ...

in the quarterfinal match. No Brewers team has reached the postseason since this most recent appearance. In 2019, Milwaukee began fielding two Arizona League squads. AZL Brewers Blue and AZL Brewers Gold, named for their major league team's colors, were created to allow ample playing time for the Brewers' large number of recent high school draftees and international signings. Prior to the 2021 season, the Arizona League was renamed as the

(ACL). In 2022, Brewers Blue

outfielder An outfielder is a person playing in one of the three defensive positions in baseball or softball, farthest from the batter. These defenders are the left fielder, the center fielder, and the right fielder. As an outfielder, their duty is to cat ...

Jace Avina was chosen for the ACL Most Valuable Player Award.

Season-by-season records

Rosters

Blue

Gold

References

{{Arizona Sports 1988 establishments in Arizona 1995 disestablishments in Arizona 2001 establishments in Arizona Arizona Complex League teams Baseball teams disestablished in 1995 Baseball teams established in 1988 Baseball teams established in 2001 Milwaukee Brewers minor league affiliates Professional baseball teams in Arizona