DES MOINES, IOWA – After losing the series finale, 3-2, to the Iowa Cubs on Monday, the Colorado Springs Sky Sox headed to hopefully warmer and dryer Oklahoma City for four games against the Dodgers. Due to inclement weather in Des Moines, the scheduled five-game series between the Cubs and Sky Sox was reduced to three contests.

Despite the recent loss and some horrible weather, the Brewers Triple-A team’s future looks bright. Their 13-7 record is good enough for first place in the Pacific Coast League American Northern division and a 1.5-game lead on the second-place Omaha Royals.

Of greater importance to Brewers fans, though, is that several of the top young players in the system are performing at a high level.

None more so than the top prospect, center fielder Lewis Brinson, who was acquired last season for Jonathan Lucroy. The 22-year-old leadoff hitter’s numbers are impressive, but not surprising considering his pedigree and how he began his Brewers career last season.

In 23 games with the Sky Sox in 2016, he batted .382 with four home runs and 20 RBI, and also had an impressive .387 on base percentage and .618 slugging percentage. In 15 games this season, his slash line is similar: .350/.391/.581 with three homers and 11 RBI.

"I've always been able to step up my game when I move up to tougher competition," Brinson said of his success against Triple-A pitchers. "I have to focus a little more because the pitchers are smart and some have pitched in the big leagues for a couple years.

"They know how to get young guys like me out. They like to get us chasing, excited and anxious, but I have to stay within myself and not try and do too much. I just have to put barrel on ball and not worry about results."

Also making his Brewers debut at Colorado Springs is newly acquired outfielder Ryan Cordell, the 24-year-old prospect (ranked No. 16 in the organization) who was the player to be named later in the Lucroy trade. In 107 games at Double-A Frisco last season, Cordell batted .264 with a career-high 19 homers, 70 RBI and 12 stolen bases.

When asked about his strengths Cordell said, "Using my athleticism, and from day to day it might look different – trying to make a play in the outfield one day and the next day being able to create something on the bases with my speed or hit for power every once in a while.  I just try and impact the game in a positive way and help my team win, and it can look different each day."

Through 19 games he has four home runs, 14 RBI, four stolen bases and a .280/.353/560 slash line.

The Brewers’ 10th-ranked prospect is probably more familiar to fans, as 2017 marks his second full season in the organization. Brett Phillips, the 22-year-old center fielder, is known for his solid play, exuberance and world-famous laugh.

He’s also coming off a disappointing – by his standards – 2016 season that was spent at Double-A Biloxi.

"Last year was the first time in my career where I experienced failure, but looking back at it, it’s probably the best thing for my career," Phillips said. "Now that I have learned to cope with that failure I can move forward and mature as a player.

"It’s one of those things that everyone goes through as a player. You either let it affect you and get in your head and kick you down, or you can grow from it and get better and move forward, knowing that you know how to handle misfortune."

Phillips is bouncing back nicely this season. In 18 April games, his slash line of .288 /.356/.561 more closely resembles his career numbers. His five home runs and 15 RBI put him on pace to eclipse career highs in both categories.

One of this trio’s greatest collective strengths is their outfield defense. Each of them was developed as a center fielder and takes great pride in preventing runs.

Dan Karcher, Colorado Springs’ radio voice for 28 seasons praised their gloves.

"I can’t imagine a better outfield in Triple-A right now," he said. "These guys are true center fielders playing the outfield at the same time.  They’re all top prospects and not top-tier just because of their offense. It’s an embarrassment of riches."

Said Brinson, "It’s great; everything that is in front of us or to the sides we usually get to, and anything over our heads is usually gone."

Cordell concurred. "It’s fun and we know that we have each other’s back," he said. "We take on the mentality of ‘don’t let anything fall,’ and it’s fun having a lot of good outfielders who can cover a lot of ground. We’re trying to help the team in that way, saving runs."

Two of the Brewers’ top three pitching prospects are currently in the Sky Sox rotation and are also the two youngest pitchers on the team.

Josh Hader, a 23-year-old lefty, returns to Colorado Springs for a second season. In five April starts, the No. 3 overall prospect went 2-2 with a 4.38 ERA in 24 2/3 innings pitched. Hader said his current strikeout-to-walk ratio of 1.18 can be attributed to his inconsistency.

But being a top prospect in a rebuilding system isn’t weighing too heavily on the Maryland native. "The prospect thing doesn’t matter because you still have to perform on the field," he said. "The publicity is nice and I don’t mind having to deal with it because I don’t let it get in my head."

Unlike the aforementioned prospects, Brandon Woodruff is a homegrown Brewers player drafted in the 11th round of the 2014 draft out of Mississippi State. That he was not acquired in a trade may be the reason he isn’t as well known to Milwaukee fans.

However, the 24-year-old has earned his No. 8 ranking within the organization. Last year at Double-A Biloxi, he posted a 10-8 record with a 3.01 ERA and 1.04 WHIP. Overall he was 14-9 with a 2.68 ERA between High-A Brevard County and Biloxi, which earned him the Brewers Minor League Pitcher of the Year award.

Woodruff’s strikeout rate rose from 6.21 in 2014-15 to 9.85 in 2016.

"Since I’ve upped my tempo and delivery and getting some innings under my belt, I’ve learned how to pitch," he said of the jump. "You want to throw a complete game with the fewest number of pitches, but strikeouts are going to happen and then you’re in a situation when you need a strikeout."

Woodruff’s 4-0 record, 1.61 ERA and 0.99 WHIP place him among the league leaders, and he shows no signs of letting up. Even though he only pitched in one major-league spring training game this year, he credits that lone inning with boosting his confidence.

Brewers fans have every right to be excited about the future general manager David Stearns is building, but Karcher said it’s still important to be patient with the development of prospects.

"These outfielders are all young guys learning how to manage the strike zone because they’re seeing a lot more breaking pitches as this level," he said. "No matter who they are, they need to learn that aspect of the game – when to lay off a slider and wait for their pitch and not be too aggressive at the plate."

Each one of the players that participated in Brewers On Deck over the winter spoke glowingly of the offseason fan event and the warm welcome they received from knowledgeable and passionate Milwaukee fans. They all said they were impressed with the city and look forward to playing for the Brewers at the big-league level.

According to two very good sources, it doesn’t sound like there will be any more episodes of the entertaining "Brett’s World." However, you can follow Brett Phillips and Brandon Woodruff on Twitter.