Wednesday, February 25

PHOENIX -- It’s Grand Theft Auto meets MLB The Show, and the latest example of the Brewers’ video production team seeing a creative idea go viral. 

Their video-game parody starring outfielder Sal Frelick took off on social media after its release on Sunday, joining past efforts like the Brewers’ remake of The Sandlot (starring the likes of Christian Yelich and Stephen Vogt) in 2018 and their documentary series, “The Freshmen” with Frelick, Jackson Chourio, Brice Turang and more in 2023. 

The latest spring hit was the brainchild of senior videographer and creative lead Carter Green, who followed Frelick throughout a Valentine’s Day workday at American Family Fields of Phoenix with a 360-degree camera mounted to a pole. Green then edited the piece with senior manager of digital content Ezra Siegel and senior editor Cody Oasen.

They weren’t sure what Frelick’s teammates would think about a staffer running around the outfield with a camera. But this is a clubhouse full of guys who are game. 

“I didn’t quite get it. They said something about a video game,” Frelick said. “But I said, ‘Yeah, follow me around.’”

He’s known to do that. 

“I just say yes to stuff before I ever know the topic,” Frelick said.

The Brewers’ marketing, social media and digital content teams have been brainstorming ideas all offseason, eager to take advantage of the relaxed atmosphere in Spring Training to pull off as many of them as possible. The Grand Theft Auto parody was everyone’s preferred place to start. 

“Once that idea was mentioned, it became our highest priority,” Siegel said. “We had a good idea it would catch on.” 

It takes clubhouse buy-in to make these projects pay off, and the Brewers have been blessed in that area. A couple of years ago the focus was longform pieces like the prospects documentary, but this spring the team is focused on short, quick videos that can draw in young fans and casual fans. The video-game idea found the sweet spot of baseball and culture. 

“We’ve noticed that as the team has gotten younger, there’s more of an interest and a savvy in doing content,” Siegel said. “That one was easy to pitch because if you’re a male under 35 years old, you’ve played Grand Theft Auto. 

“In general, I appreciate that the guys trust that we have the best intentions with everything. I really appreciate that.” 

There’s more coming from what Siegel and his team loosely calls their “Arthouse Baseball” series. Another installment was planned for release on Tuesday morning. 

Andrew Vaughn’s very first phone call in the wake of the trade that brought him to the Brewers last season came from manager Pat Murphy. Vaughn learned quickly that Murphy, a onetime boxer, still pulls no punches. 

“I didn’t even know what was going on. I just got traded,” Vaughn said. “He was like, ‘So, what’s going on?’” 

It was clear that Murphy was asking what’s going on from a baseball standpoint. Vaughn, a former first-round Draft pick, had started the season hitting .189 for the White Sox and was demoted to Triple-A. He was at a low point in his career, having been dealt for a pitcher, Aaron Civale, who demanded the Brewers trade him rather than assign him to the bullpen. 

Vaughn explained to Murphy that he had some ideas he was working on in the batting cage. 

“He’s like, ‘Well, all right. Figure it out. Let’s go,’” Vaughn said. 

Sometimes the message is that simple. And sometimes, coupled with a player’s hard work and talent and a change of scenery, it works. 

Baseball has a number to quantify everything from hitting production to catcher framing to every possible variety of pitch manipulation, but there’s still no way to quantify the impact of a field manager like Murphy, who cut his teeth as a hard-charging college coach and then adapted to the pro ranks with the Padres and Brewers. Vaughn isn’t the only player who’s had an eye-opening introduction.

“He just pushes everybody to be their best,” said Brewers reliever Trevor Megill, who posted a negative WAR in a pair of seasons for the Cubs and Twins before developing into an All-Star closer in Milwaukee. “I feel like, upstairs, they find players who they know would respond well to Murphy. I feel like that’s part of the equation, because everybody seems to respond really well to his [BS] or the great stuff that comes from him.”

Thin skin? That might not work here. 

“I appreciate it a lot,” said Quinn Priester, another 2025 standout who came to the Brewers from an opponent’s Triple-A team. “You’re never guessing. You know every single thing he’s thinking. I do feel like sometimes you have to have thick skin with it, but if you realize that he wants the best for us and this team, you move through it. I enjoy the banter here and there.” 

He’s not alone.

“You put a crusty, gritty manager in charge of the same kind of dudes,” Megill said, “and we get some good results.”

“We love it,” Vaughn said. “We love that passion for the game. I think everybody in here feels the same thing.”

• What’s the 'secret sauce' for Jacob Misiorowski and the close-knit Brewers? There are any number of answers, but one of the things that binds players is a love of trading cards. More >>

• The gold medal game in men’s hockey brought happiness and heartbreak to the Brewers’ clubhouse, depending on where players hail from. More >>

• Pitching prospect Frank Cairone might not be in Arizona, but he’s with the Brewers in spirit. Players donned custom “FC United” shirts on the day of the Cactus League opener to support Cairone’s comeback from a serious car crash. More >>

• The Brewers and Brewers Community Foundation executive director Cecilia Gore will be honored by the Vince Lombardi Cancer Foundation next month. More >>

To subscribe to Brewers Beat, visit this page and mark "Brewers Beat" from our newsletter list. Make sure you're following the Brewers or that they're checked as your favorite team.

View Online

© 2026 MLB Advanced Media, L.P. MLB trademarks and copyrights are used with permission of Major League Baseball. Visit MLB.com. Any other marks used herein are trademarks of their respective owners.

Please review our Privacy Policy.

You (mlb-newsletters@mlb.com) received this message because you registered to receive commercial email messages or purchased a ticket from MLB. 

Please add info@marketing.mlbemail.com to your address book to ensure our messages reach your inbox. If you no longer wish to receive commercial email messages from MLB.com, please unsubscribe or log in and manage your email subscriptions.

Postal Address: MLB.com, c/o MLB Advanced Media, L.P., 1271 Avenue of the Americas, New York, NY 10020.