Kolten Wong to Brewers

[Pugger]

Honestly, for all this discussion about Hiura, I would not be at all surprised if he stays at 2B and Wong moves full-time to 3B.

 

You have literally one of the best if not the best defensive 2B in baseball and you're going to move him to a position he's never played in his career to keep an absolute defensive butcher at his position?

 

I don't think so.

 

this

[Pugger]

It seems to me that Hiura’s height issue will be mitigated by the fact that he won’t have to catch any throws from himself.

 

[Jopal78]

 

I think Urias is trade bait myself as part of package for a starting pitcher and they want either Turner or someone like Brad Miller or Jake Lamb to platoon with Robertson. Turang will be Arcia's heir, not Urias.

 

What team is going to give anything of value for Urias? He’s already couple of seasons removed from being one of the better regarded Padres prospects. His major league numbers so far are terrible.

 

At this point his most marketable trait is youth, and frankly he’s probably worth more to the Brewers than he is to other clubs.

[monty57]

I’m not banking on it, but I’m also not ruling out the possibility that Hiura could become pretty good at playing 1B.

 

Agree. He's moving to an easier position, and his two biggest deficiencies are lack of range and a poor throwing arm, both of which are much less important at first base than at second. Plus, he's used to playing on the right side of the infield, so he shouldn't be surprised by how the ball comes off the bat.

 

He needs to learn how to scoop. That's very important for first basemen, and if he can't do that he won't stick. Get him to Arizona now and have an instructor throw about 1,000 balls a day into the dirt for him to scoop. He's a professional athlete who has been fielding baseballs his whole life. He doesn't have the tools (speed/arm) for second, but he could be a perfectly fine first baseman.

 

It's a plus that they made this move now rather than mid-season. I'd be more worried if he didn't have time to prepare, but he has all spring to play first base and get accustomed to it. He might not be an adequate defender, but that's far from certain.

[StearnsFTW]

Hiura is playing 1B with Vogelbach likely getting some starts against tough righties. Wong is at 2B pretty much everyday. Arcia at shortstop. Stearns paid a good bit for Urias and I very much doubt that he is just going to toss him aside. I think Urias is the 3B and will be given every opportunity to stick in the starting lineup everyday...Robertson is the fallback plan if Urias fails.

 

I think all the Brewers remaining money will go towards picking up one more starting pitcher.

 

I think Urias is trade bait myself as part of package for a starting pitcher and they want either Turner or someone like Brad Miller or Jake Lamb to platoon with Robertson. Turang will be Arcia's heir, not Urias.

 

I would be completely shocked if this is how it goes down. They gave up a lot for Urias. I can't believe they'd trade him before giving him a chance. Plus Arcia stinks.

[Lathund]

Hiura is playing 1B with Vogelbach likely getting some starts against tough righties. Wong is at 2B pretty much everyday. Arcia at shortstop. Stearns paid a good bit for Urias and I very much doubt that he is just going to toss him aside. I think Urias is the 3B and will be given every opportunity to stick in the starting lineup everyday...Robertson is the fallback plan if Urias fails.

 

I think all the Brewers remaining money will go towards picking up one more starting pitcher.

 

I think Urias is trade bait myself as part of package for a starting pitcher and they want either Turner or someone like Brad Miller or Jake Lamb to platoon with Robertson. Turang will be Arcia's heir, not Urias.

 

IMO Urias is here to stay, and depending on how well Robertson does (Or if someone like Turner signs) at 3B or Arcia at SS, I wouldn't be surprised if Urias was the starting SS later on in the season. Arcia did seem to genuinely take a step forward not just in results but in underlying performance, but it's still a very small sample compared to his career numbers so I won't buy into it yet. It's worth pointing out that Urias so far in his career has been a better hitter than Arcia (76 wRC+ vs 71) and might well be the better defender too. He'll be cheaper, with more upside, and much longer team control so if the team has to choose, it'll likely be Urias. It might be as a Ben Zobrist type everyday player rather than a SS, but I think they'll stick with him for a while. I'm a believer in hi abilities, but only time will tell.

[wibadgers23]

I think Arcia is a lot more likely to get traded than Urias.

[A Swing and A Drive]

Reds are in need of a SS and most of the Free Agent SS have now signed with others. Maybe trade Arica to Reds for a decent prospect, give Urias the everyday SS spot and sign a 3B free agent.

 

And i agree that Urias will be given an opportunity of everyday ABs before the Brewers consider trading him.

[MrTPlush]

Not sure what your definition of a “decent prospect” is, but Arcia is pretty worthless. I think a team would take him off our hands and maybe turn him into a utility guy...but good chance no one would take him for free.

 

Even Urias, if we tried to trade him the return would be pretty depressing if I had to guess.

[monty57]

I think Urias is trade bait myself as part of package for a starting pitcher and they want either Turner or someone like Brad Miller or Jake Lamb to platoon with Robertson. Turang will be Arcia's heir, not Urias.

 

I would be completely shocked if this is how it goes down. They gave up a lot for Urias. I can't believe they'd trade him before giving him a chance. Plus Arcia stinks.

 

I don't know if it will happen, but I wouldn't be shocked. Things change, and Urias is out of position at third base. If they could sign Turner (big "if") and trade Urias for a young starting pitcher, they'd be a better team and instead of having a young Urias, they'd have another young pitcher. Turang is still their as heir-apparent at shortstop when Arcia leaves.

 

If they think Robertson is good enough to start at SS every now and then, then it might make sense to trade either Arcia or Urias. Arcia may be more likely, but he probably wouldn't bring much back. If the cards fall into place and there is a team that would give up a good package for Urias, I could see it happening.

 

Of course, I'm also starting to think that Wong was their big move and they're content with Hiura at first, Wong at second and the mix of Urias/Arcia/Robertson at shortstop and third. Urias has upside, and Robertson's history makes me think that if he's healthy he has a chance at being an .800+ OPS, average fielding third baseman. Or it could bomb, which is why they were at least looking at Turner.

[OldSchoolSnapper]

The move to first base could cost Hiura a ton in future earnings. It's one thing being a great hitter for a 2nd baseman, it's quite another to be a premier offensive first baseman. In 2020, he was basically Chris Carter offensively.

 

He really can't play second base. He just doesn't have the arm.

 

I'll be fairly surprised if he isn't traded though. I just feel like he's not in the team's long-term plans.

[Ron Robinsons Beard]

Will Sammon confirms via Stearns that the plan is for Hiura to be the main 1B.

 

[markedman5]

 

[OldSchoolSnapper]

Well if they're gonna run with Hiura I'll cross my fingers. Justin Turner would make this team the favorite in the NL Central, maybe?

[pacopete4]

Don't trade Urias. Use him as the super-sub. Let Arcia play out what will more than likely be his final year as a Brewer and hopefully, with the experience, you place Urias in as SS beginning the following season. No reason at all to move on from either one of them.

[wibadgers23]

Well if they're gonna run with Hiura I'll cross my fingers. Justin Turner would make this team the favorite in the NL Central, maybe?

 

With our pitching, yes I think we’d have just as good of a chance as the Cardinals/Reds/Cubs.

[Ron Robinsons Beard]

It will be interesting to watch this play out. Is signing Wong to play 2B, while moving Hiura's bat to 1B a better option than just leaving Hiura at 2B and signing someone like Mitch Moreland to man 1B this year? I know that if Hiura can play a competent 1B that they'll be better defensively, because he's proven that he cannot play a competent 2B. Wong is a complete 180 from Hiura at 2B.

 

Stearns indicated this morning that Hiura is going to have terrific range for a 1B. His athleticism was never a problem at 2B. It was always the throwing and fielding part. I expect that he's going to have some growing pains digging out throws at 1B, but he does have the athleticism to play there.

[pacopete4]

Wong gets us more athletic which we desperately needed. Signing Moreland and keeping Hiura at 1B doesn't do much for that.

[SRB]

Well if they're gonna run with Hiura I'll cross my fingers. Justin Turner would make this team the favorite in the NL Central, maybe?

 

We might be the favorites even without Turner. The NL Central looks incredibly weak.

[monty57]

 

 

From the Tweet: David Stearns on Kolten Wong: "We know we're adding in our opinion the best defensive second baseman in all of baseball. ... It allows us to formulate what could be one of the premier defensive infields."

 

If they keep Urias as the primary 3B, with Arcia and Wong, they should have a very good defensive infield. Plus we get Cain back in CF, moving Garcia to the corner where he's a pretty good fielder, and overall we should have a good defensive team to help out what could be one of the best pitching staffs in Brewers' history.

 

If we just get a little "reversion to the mean" from some of our hitters that were down last year, the Brewers could be a fun team to watch. They're kind of turning into an anti-Melvin team, so if you like high scoring games with lots of homers you may be in for a long year.

[markedman5]

Will Sammon

@WillSammon

·

1h

On payroll flexibility after Wong, Stearns said: "We continue to evaluate every opportunity that's out there." He added that, "I don't think anything is necessarily off the table," but it has to make sense for this year and beyond.

[AKCheesehead]

I don't know if it will happen, but I wouldn't be shocked. Things change, and Urias is out of position at third base. If they could sign Turner (big "if") and trade Urias for a young starting pitcher, they'd be a better team and instead of having a young Urias, they'd have another young pitcher. Turang is still their as heir-apparent at shortstop when Arcia leaves.

 

If they think Robertson is good enough to start at SS every now and then, then it might make sense to trade either Arcia or Urias. Arcia may be more likely, but he probably wouldn't bring much back. If the cards fall into place and there is a team that would give up a good package for Urias, I could see it happening.

 

Of course, I'm also starting to think that Wong was their big move and they're content with Hiura at first, Wong at second and the mix of Urias/Arcia/Robertson at shortstop and third. Urias has upside, and Robertson's history makes me think that if he's healthy he has a chance at being an .800+ OPS, average fielding third baseman. Or it could bomb, which is why they were at least looking at Turner.

 

Personally, I am hoping for the Urias/Arcia/Robertson mix at ss/3b. Turner is a great player but he's 36 and would almost certainly require a 3 year deal to come to Milwaukee. Conservatively, my opinion is that Turner would probably be a little better than the Urias/Robertson platoon in 2021, a little worse in 2022 and an obvious and painful shortfall by 2023.

I wouldn't predict it, but I could even imagine Urias straight up outperforming Turner as soon as 2021. Urias definitely has the potential to shine. Turner's got his age working against him, and he just got his championship. It's possible he may not be as hungry and driven once he came to the Brewers.

[brewcrewdue80]

I'm good with acquiring Wong, but Huira at first has me more that a bit worried. I have visions of him becoming Jaun Francisco 2.0. If there is a DH this year, I could see Huira as DH and Nottingham as 1b.

I keep seeing this. I guess I need someone to explain this to me like I was 5 years old why a bad defender that plays 2nd base becomes the lynchpin of the coming apocalypse if he shifts to playing 1st base?

 

Is it simply that he'll be involved in more plays? Aren't most of those plays going to be routine "put foot on bag, catch easy throw for out"?

 

Its not just the fielding a BBIP but how's he going to do on pickoff attempts? Ball thrown a little off and suddenly runner on 3rd or scores. Certainly with Milwaukee pitching he's got at least 1 less defensive play on a BBIP since Brewers pitchers K rate is so high. At same time they do walk a high amount.

[TURBO]

I'm not going to buy the fact Hiura will be fine at 1B until I see it for myself.

 

I sure hope he is, but if he struggles there and can't be trusted, that means he has probably lost some games for us due to errors.

 

Randomly moving guys around to different positions seems to happen with the Brewers more than any other team. (no evidence of that, but it sure seems like it)

[SeaBass]

I'm good with acquiring Wong, but Huira at first has me more that a bit worried. I have visions of him becoming Jaun Francisco 2.0. If there is a DH this year, I could see Huira as DH and Nottingham as 1b.

I keep seeing this. I guess I need someone to explain this to me like I was 5 years old why a bad defender that plays 2nd base becomes the lynchpin of the coming apocalypse if he shifts to playing 1st base?

 

Is it simply that he'll be involved in more plays? Aren't most of those plays going to be routine "put foot on bag, catch easy throw for out"?

 

Its not just the fielding a BBIP but how's he going to do on pickoff attempts? Ball thrown a little off and suddenly runner on 3rd or scores. Certainly with Milwaukee pitching he's got at least 1 less defensive play on a BBIP since Brewers pitchers K rate is so high. At same time they do walk a high amount.

Correct me if I'm wrong but pickoff attempts at 2nd base are also a thing and seem like a more difficult execution than pickoffs at 1B.

 

Concerns over his moving to 1B are way overblown IMO. I'm not saying there shouldn't be a baseline level of doubt but the team was already absorbing a percentage of risk playing him at 2B, I just don't know that the risk becomes significantly greater with a move to 1B and it's possible it ends up reducing that original risk.