National League Rookie Roundup: Jackson Chourio Has Arrived

The Brewers’ 20-year-old outfielder got off to a slow start after signing a record-setting contract, but he’s now responsible for a historic rookie season.

Chourio smiles as he runs the bases after hitting a homer over the Cincinnati Reds at Great American Ball Park in Cincinnati. / Cara Owsley / USA TODAY NETWORK

Welcome to the Rookie Roundup, a weekly look-in on baseball’s best and most interesting first-year players. Last week, we highlighted Detroit Tigers outfielder Parker Meadows. Next up is some praise for Milwaukee Brewers wunderkind Jackson Chourio, who’s put himself in some elite company in the midst of a historic campaign.

Months before Milwaukee Brewers outfielder Jackson Chourio appeared in his first MLB game, he had already made history. As his rookie season nears its end, he’s put himself in prime position to do so again.

Back in December, Chourio, then 19, signed an eight-year contract extension that guaranteed him $82 million, making it the richest deal ever for a player with no Major League experience. He made the team’s Opening Day roster and debuted 18 days after his 20th birthday to a considerable amount of hype—though it took the youngster some time to find his footing in the big leagues.

With his team putting together a dominant regular season that has Milwaukee on the cusp of a second straight NL Central title, Chourio has been afforded a long runway to get comfortable. He hit .210/.254/.327 through the end of May, managing only nine extra-base hits in 174 plate appearances.

But for a player who hit 22 homers and stole 44 bases across Double and Triple A in 2023—at 19 years old, facing opposition regularly five or more years older than him—it was clear the talent was there, and Milwaukee stuck with Chourio in an everyday role as he worked through his struggles.

That patience has paid off in a big way. Since the start of June, Chourio has not just been one of the best rookies in the league, but he’s ranked as one of the the league’s best hitters, period. His .308 batting average is tops in the National League among qualified hitters during that span, and he’s tapped into his power-speed potential that made him so dangerous in the minor leagues. Since the All-Star break, Chourio is one of six players to log at least 10 home runs and 10 stolen bases.

10+ HR/SB since All-Star break

Player	HR	SB
Shohei Ohtani	17	23
Tyler Fitzgerald	12	10
José Ramírez	11	17
Jazz Chisholm Jr.	10	16
Jackson Chourio	10	10
Jarren Duran	10	10

Former top prospects who hyper-speed their way to the majors often endure growing pains during their first taste of major league competition, and Chourio was no different. That he’s been able to adapt so quickly is what has him poised to join truly elite company.

Chourio’s batted ball data has made gradual improvements as his rookie season has progressed, but it’s the strides he’s taken in plate discipline that have enabled him to make The Leap so quickly. Through the end of May, Chourio was striking out at a 27% clip while walking just 5.7% of the time. Since then, his strikeout rate has plummeted to a mere 16.8%, while his walk rate has ticked up to 7.8%. To put that another way, consider this: through the end of April, Chourio had logged 12 multi-strikeout games in 27 games total. Since then, he has just 11 multi-strikeout efforts in 102 contests.

That ability to make contact has enabled Chourio to take advantage of perhaps his best trait: his speed. Chourio’s average sprint speed of 29.7 feet per second is tied for the 13th-fastest in the majors. As long as Chourio’s speed remains elite, hitting the ball on the ground will present opportunities for him to eke out value via infield hits. But for a player whose 45.2% hard-hit rate ranks him in the 75th percentile among all hitters, he’ll do more damage if he can elevate the ball more frequently.

Chourio’s speed makes him a weapon on the basepaths. / Troy Babbitt-Imagn Images

Since June 1, Chourio’s 24.5% line drive rate ranks 13th in the league, though his 29.1% fly ball rate during that span ranks 138th out of 148 qualified hitters. Given that Chourio’s home run-to-fly ball ratio of 20.3% is the 18th highest, he could develop into one of the league’s premier home run hitters if he lifted the ball more frequently than players like Jacob Young and Nico Hoerner.

If that sounds like a criticism of Chourio, it’s not—more like a PSA for what’s to come. Eventually, his skill set and approach will harmonize in such a way that he won’t just be an intriguing talent putting up great numbers for his age, but a full-fledged star.

Chourio is one homer away from joining Mike Trout (2012) and Vada Pinson (1959) as the only 20-year-olds to hit 20 home runs and steal 20 bases in a season. Even if he isn’t named the NL Rookie of the Year—fantastic campaigns from Jackson Merrill and Paul Skenes have rendered Chourio’s odds a longshot—his work to date makes this season already one of the best by a player this young over the past 25 years.

WAR by 20-year-olds since 2000

Year	Player	Age	fWAR
2012	Mike Trout	20	10.1
2019	Juan Soto	20	5.6
2013	Manny Machado	20	5.0
2010	Jason Heyward	20	4.7
2018	Ronald Acuña Jr.	20	4.4
2012	Bryce Harper	19	4.4
2013	Bryce Harper	20	4.1
2018	Juan Soto	19	3.7
2015	Carlos Correa	20	3.4
2024	Jackson Chourio	20	3.3

The seven other players on that list have combined for six MVP awards and 37 All-Star appearances to date. How much will Chourio add to those totals? Time will tell. But given how quickly he was able to turn his rookie season from a work in progress to a coming out party, it’s safe to say the accolades will follow the attention in short order.