From 2011 through 2021, a span of 11 years, the Milwaukee Brewers had 11 different Opening Day starting first basemen. 2011, of course, was Prince Fielder’s final season in Milwaukee and 2021 was Rowdy Tellez’s first full year. In between the pair, the Brewers tried out players like Corey Hart, Keston Hiura, Eric Thames, Jesus Aguilar, and even Ryan Braun at the position.
Obviously, none of them stuck or stuck around for very long.
And while Rhys Hoskins has started at first base and has been a decent power bat in the lineup, he is not considered a long-term option for the Brewers at the position. In fact, they tried to trade him this past offseason after he picked up his $18 million player option for 2024.
Needless to say, Milwaukee has had some trouble developing a player they feel comfortable committing to for a long period of time at first base. Given the talent in the minor league system, though, that may change soon.
The Milwaukee Brewers Traded Wes Clarke Due to Multiple Promising First Basemen
In Triple-A Nashville alone, the Brewers have multiple exciting prospects who are playing well and also can man first base. Ernesto Martinez Jr., for example, is hitting .260/.393/.427 with five home runs and 23 RBI. Bobby Dalbec, formerly of the Chicago White Sox, is hitting .284/.337/.548 with nine home runs and 34 RBI in the minors this year.
Additionally, the Brewers also have Tyler Black will be getting more playing time soon as he recovers from an early season hand injury.
Andrew Vaughn, who has 77 career home runs in the Majors, was recently acquired for Aaron Civale and also plays first base.
With so many good players capable of playing the position, Milwaukee decided that they needed to ensure that they can all find playing time. And as a result, they traded Wes Clarke, who has 72 career home runs in the minors, to the Houston Astros.
Milwaukee Brewers Fans React to the Wes Clarke Trade
So far this season, first baseman Wes Clarke has a batting line of .216/.352/.358 with six home runs and 16 RBI. Part of the reason he has never been called up to Milwaukee is because of his propensity to strike out (he has 55 in 46 games this year).
And with so many promising prospects at first base, Brewers fans were not too surprised to see Clarke shipped out:
Makes sense considering what’s coming up the pipeline at first. https://t.co/fCBAQwVU4b
— Matt Carroll (@MKEMatt13) June 18, 2025
Clarke has a ton of power but has never really looked like a guy who could make enough contact to play in the bigs given his defensive limitations. Not having a good season, maybe the Astros see something to tinker with but probably just a nothing move. https://t.co/MNfrzzzMLo
— Spencer Morris (@ProspectSpencer) June 18, 2025
Does this make room for Andrew Vaughn to get playing time…
…or could Luke Adams be on his way to Nashville in short order?
(Or both) https://t.co/3kPvdkpEGy
— The Brewer Nation (@BrewerNation) June 18, 2025
With a logjam at 1B in Nashville after the addition of Andrew Vaughn, the Brewers trade Wes Clarke to Houston.
Clarke stood to lose the most playing time with the Vaughn addition https://t.co/fF900EvvXE
— AthlonBrewers (@AthlonBrewers) June 18, 2025
It will be interesting to see if Clarke gets a chance to break into the Majors with Houston. His path was certainly blocked by a plethora of other players in Milwaukee’s system.
More Milwaukee Brewers News from Wisconsin Sports Heroics
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