The Milwaukee Brewers are in a state of transition at the keystone heading into the 2019 season.
Mauricio Dubon just might be the answer for the Milwaukee Brewers. Although the Brewers seventh-ranked prospect missed the majority of the 2018 season due to injury, his future is as bright as any prospect in the Brewers system.
Dubon was acquired along with Travis Shaw, Josh Pennington, and Yeison Coca. The performance that Milwaukee has received from Shaw makes this trade worth it already. However, Dubon could prove to be the best of the bunch.
Dubon was limited to just 27 games after tearing the ACL in his left knee in early May. However, he has shown throughout his Minor League career that he has a bright MLB future.
Will that future begin in 2019?
Although Dubon needs to first show that he’s fully recovered from his knee injury, he almost certainly will make his Milwaukee Brewers debut during the 2019 season. The second base conversation is wide open following the decision to non-tender Jonathan Schoop and Dubon will be right in the middle of it all.
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The 24-year-old doesn’t hit for much power and will never be a prolific power hitter. However, Dubon is an on-base machine, even though he doesn’t draw a ton of walks.
Dubon has a .349 on-base percentage with 560 hits across 2068 career Minor League plate appearances. He has also hit .300 during that span and shows tremendous bat-to-ball skills. He has a bright future near the top of the batting order for the Brewers.
Dubon has also been an above-average defender at multiple positions on the infield. He has played extensively at second base and shortstop, but he has also made a few appearances at third base and even in the outfield.
In this day and age, that type of versatility will come in handy. Although he has all the skill required to be the long-term answer at the keystone, that versatility makes him even more valuable.
Dubon should be in line to compete for an Opening Day roster spot barring an offseason acquisition at second base. However, it’s more likely that we won’t see Dubon in the Majors until May or even later. That being said, 2019 is the season Dubon graduates from prospect to Major Leaguer.