Milwaukee Brewers: Options to fill the hole at second base
The long term plan at second base for the Milwaukee Brewers is clear, get to Keston Hiura. Getting there is a whole different issue.
After deciding to part ways with the no doubt expensive figure attached to Jonathan Schoop there is no real answer at second base right now for the Milwaukee Brewers. That is something that will obviously figured out before Spring Training hits. As far as I know, there are no analytics saying playing without a second baseman is helpful.
The biggest issue is going to be the timing of it all. In the most generous of guesses, Keston Hiura will be ready to go around the All-Star Break. In the harshest of assessments, he will be in the 2020 conversation.
Nobody but David Stearns and company knows the true plan. What we do know is that Hiura can hit the ball with the best of them. His glove is not polished, but his bat is creating all the hype in the world.
In truth, the Milwaukee Brewers should be looking for a cheap stopgap until Hiura can take over full time. That could have been Mauricio Dubon, but he is coming off a torn ACL. So he will likely not be in the talks for Opening Day.
The early name connected to Milwauke is Jed Lowrie. Of course, there are clear issues with going for him after a career year. Plus, there is no guarantee that the answer comes from the free agent market.
There will be challenges to filling the hole at second base no matter what route is chosen. At the end of the day there are three real options: In house, free agency, and trade. Off the bat, trade seems to be the least likely of the three, and it is not even close. Though Stearns has surprised people before *cough* Schoop*cough*.
There are a few options that are already on the Milwaukee Brewers that will suffice as stop gaps. However, for a competing team none are really that enticing. That being said, this is likely the cheapest option.
The first guy to consider is Mauricio Dubon. Prior to his season ending injury, he was hitting .343 in Colorado Springs. Yes, I know it is Colorado. Despite the inflated numbers, he was ready to join the Milwaukee Brewers squad until he tore his ACL.
One of the biggest issues with him is obvious. He tore his ACL in May and has not played since. Taking a chance on a guy like that, who has not recorded a single MLB at bat, is probably not the smartest route to go.
If the Brewers want to give Dubon the chance after he heats up a little in the minors, it could be worth letting Hernan Perez get a start. But also it probably is not. I am just throwing ideas out there. He is a great defensive swiss army knife, but his bat is not ideal in an everyday role for a team looking to compete.
There are a couple of other names like Nate Orf and Tyler Saladino to look at as well. The latter is more likely considering he is on the Milwaukee Brewers 40-man roster. And after avoiding arbitration, I would bet that Saladino is the likely candidate.
I have one more extremely hot and unlikely take to provide. Keston Hiura gets the gig out of Spring Training. He can hit, and he can likely hit decently at the MLB level right now. If the future is now, why wait?
The answer to my question is because he truly is not ready yet and it will effect his ceiling if he is rushed to the MLB level. This is not me reccomending it, but I could potentially see it if he has the type of Spring Training performance that makes an unreal Spring Training performance look like it is nothing.
The free agent market is where the Milwaukee Brewers will find the best talent, but that will come at a more expensive price.
This is the point where I want to go on record saying that the Milwaukee Brewers answer is not among the current second base pool. Keep in mind I am targeting a specific part of that free agent pool. That will come in handy later.
First, let me explain my disdain for the current second base pool. It is not that I think the players are bad, but the market is already more expensive that what the return would be. Ian Kinsler made sure of that when he set the market with his most recent deal.
In terms of stopgaps, that means a player like Jed Lowrie is going to require multiple years. The same would likely go for Asdrubal Cabrera, Neil Waler, Daniel Murphy, or whoever you think the Milwaukee Brewers should sign. The market is going to make finding a competitive stopgap hard.
So, what about the third base pool? Again, I know. Travis Shaw! Mayor DDC! How dare I! So, why not bring back Moose? Shaw can play second base again, where he was not the worst defender. It could just be preparation for Hiura.
Mike Moustakas might be looking for a multi year deal, but he might change that tune to come back and finish what he started with the Brewers. This scenario seems unlikely, but it should be something to consider. It would appear to create the most dangerous lineup.
So this is admittedly laughable on the surface. The Milwaukee Brewers likely will not be looking to the trade market, especially after getting burned on Jonathan Schoop. However, there is no real way to count it out so here we are.
If you don’t believe that there could be a surprise move to fill the void at second base, ask yourself one question. Did you think the Milwaukee Brewers would get Alex Claudio? If your answer is yes, then you are probably lying. But I respect it.
With that in mind, who could be potential trade options? Second base is not a place where multiple teams are eager to part with their assets. The only real talked about trade option is Jason Kipnis who is making large sums of money without performing. However, the Indians would be willing to take on part of that contract.
Outside of Kipnis, I can provide several odd guesses at potential trade targets that have no rumor mill backing.
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First, we look to the Detroit Tigers. They have a guy named Nikko Goodrum who exceeded all expectations. He is decent, and still pretty controllable. The only reason he is here is because the Tigers are in a state of rebuild, so they will depart with almost anyone for a price. Though they would not be actively shopping Goodrum.
Another name I want to throw out there is Dee Gordon. He is a long time second baseman who converted to outfield. With Jerry Dipoto in charge of his contract, anything can happen. Literally anything.
The last name I want to throw out there is old friend Jonathan Villar. Following the Rule 5 Draft where the Orioles took Richie Martin and traded for Drew Jackson, they look to be trying to start their infield future now. With Rio Ruiz there to play third, Villar is likely more expendable than people might think.
This seems like a good time to reiterate that outside of Kipnis, there is no backing to any of these names. They are just guesses.
Next. Do the Dodgers have the Bryce Harper edge?. dark
Either way, trading is not likely for the Milwaukee Brewers for anything except a starting pitcher. They will either look to the free agent market or their own organization. My best guess is that Tyler Saladino walks away with the job on Opening Day.