Since the departure of Prince Fielder the Milwaukee Brewers have had a revolving door of first basemen. Adam Lind, Chris Carter, Eric Thames, Jesus Aguilar, Justin Smoak, Daniel Vogelbach, Rowdy Tellez, and Rhys Hoskins are just a few players who have all been Opening Day first basemen over the last decade.
Despite rotating through first basemen, until recently the Brewers have not had many exciting first baseman prospects. Blake Burke is one prospect who was selected in the most recent MLB draft. Brock Wilken, Mike Boeve, and Luke Adams can all play first base but their primary positions are elsewhere.
Not yet mentioned was Ernesto Martinez Jr. He has been in the Brewers organization for the past seven years. At age 25 the minor league free agent elected to re-sign with Milwaukee and he was granted an invite to big league camp as well.
Per reports the Milwaukee Brewers have re-signed Ernesto Martinez Jr and invited him to big league camp
On X, Francys Romero reported that Ernesto Martinez Jr is not only re-signing with the Brewers, but that he is getting an invite to big league camp as well. The team has not yet made this transaction official.
Sources: Cuban OF/1B Ernesto Martinez Jr. (25) re-signed with the Milwaukee Brewers on a Minor League deal with an invitation to 2025 MLB spring training camp.
Martinez has been with the organization for 7 years, with scouts projecting a mid-2025 MLB debut. pic.twitter.com/E0Ca0R5uFs
— Francys Romero (@francysromeroFR) November 1, 2024
Ernesto Martinez Jr has had good back-to-back seasons in the Minor Leagues
The 6’6″ left-handed swinging Ernesto Martinez Jr played exclusively in Double-A last year. He slashed .284/.365/.466 that included 13 home runs, 30 doubles, 62 RBI, and 20 stolen bases. Those numbers were all improvements from 2023 when he slashed .261/.345/.416 between the Single-A and Double-A levels.
Defensively, Martinez Jr is a big target at first base, but he is also very athletic. He not only has a large wingspan that allows him to reach further for the ball, but he is extremely flexible and is well known in Minor League baseball for regularly doing the splits.
Brock Wilken and Ernesto Martinez Jr. combine for a stellar play to end the frame and keep the lead!
🪓: 4 | 🦪: 5
📻 https://t.co/LIZcF8bIA9
📺 @ballylivenow, https://t.co/5dYqzkzNIs#ShuckYeah #ThisIsMyCrew pic.twitter.com/Oq0QLx8nFa— Biloxi Shuckers (@BiloxiShuckers) September 13, 2024
Next year, regardless of how Ernesto Martinez Jr performs in big league camp, he is a candidate to begin the year in Triple-A. This will put him one stop away from the big leagues. If he plays well next year and an opportunity arises it is not unreasonable to think that he could make his MLB debut in 2025.
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