Hey everyone!

The Fall League has flown by! It’s been a short season but one that has taught me a lot about the game. The hitters in this league are by far the best I have ever faced. Every hitter in the lineup hitters 1 through 9 here can really hit. After struggling for the first time in my professional career, I’ve had to rethink the way I pitch a little bit. My fastball has always gotten me to the next level, but now its taken a lot more of my off-speed to get these guys out. I’ve had some really good outings…and some outings I haven’t been so happy with. But, I will say this: I have learned how to pitch more effectively and have become a smarter pitcher in this league. I suppose that’s what I’ve facing off against future big leaguers like Mike Olt and Wil Myers will force you to do.  One of the things I’ve enjoyed the most is having my good friend and UCLA teammate Gerrit Cole living at my house. We’ve been friends for years, so getting to hang out with him has been great. We were both chosen to pitch in the Rising Stars game and that will be something I will remember for a long time. I gave up more runs than I had hoped, but I’ve got to hand it to the hitters…they were on fire that night!

My team, the Salt River Rafters, have been on a tear lately. We’ve been in first place in our division for a while now, but with tonight’s win, we have secured our spot in next Saturday’s Championship game vs. the Surprise Saguaros. This game is going to be one heck of a game. Both teams have incredible lineups, top to bottom, and great pitching to go with it. You’re NOT going to want to miss this one. It will be broadcast live on the MLB Network. Thanks for reading everyone!

Be sure and FOLLOW ME on Twitter for daily updates on what’s going on with the Rafters!

-Charles Brewer, Starting Pitcher, Arizona Diamondbacks

Hey everyone – Welcome to my blog!

This is the first blog I’ve ever written, so I’m going to do my best to not disappoint! I’m going to be having some fun with this, while keeping you updated on all of the action going on in the Arizona Fall League.

Allow me to introduce myself. My name is Charles Brewer, and as you can see from the title of my blog, I was born and raised here in Scottsdale, Arizona. I attended Chaparral High School here in Scottsdale and was a part of 3 State Championship winning teams before graduating in 2006. After my senior season, I was drafted by the Anaheim Angels but chose to play college baseball at UCLA. During college, I played two seasons in the Cape Code Collegiate Summer League for the Chatham A’s (yes, the same team featured in the movie ‘Summer Catch’ haha). After playing three years at UCLA, I was drafted in 2009 by the Arizona Diamondbacks in the 12th round. I feel so fortunate to have been drafted by my hometown team that I have grown up watching since I was a kid. I was 12 years old when I was in the stands for Game 7 of the 2001 World Series. We all know how that turned out…

This past season was my second full year in the minor leagues and spent this year playing for the Double-A Mobile Baybears. This was one of the most talented teams I have ever been a part of, and sure enough we ended up winning the 2011 Southern League Championship. You can check out the YouTube video of our final win and our celebration in the clubhouse – CLICK HERE.

Every October, the top minor league prospects from all 30 Major League teams are invited to compete against each other here in the Arizona Fall League. I’m very excited about the opportunity to play for the Salt River Rafters. This Fall is going to be very important for me to make up innings that I missed from some bad luck I had during this season. On June 2nd, I took a comeback line drive off of my pitching hand and was forced to miss two and a half months of the season.  I uploaded the video to YouTube so all of you can see it here… OUCH!

Tomorrow, I will make my first Fall League start on the mound against the Peoria Javelinas. Wish me luck everyone. Catch up with you guys soon.

You can follow me on Twitter for more updates.

God Bless,

Charles Brewer #34, , Pitcher, Arizona Diamondbacks