Though their postseason run came to an abrupt end, the Milwaukee Brewers have a lot of time to think about their infield situation. Particularly, who’s going to be at third base.
Heading into the season, determining a starting third baseman was a struggle for the Brewers. The team had Luis Urias, but he had injured his hamstring on Opening Day which resulted in him missing a lot of time and eventually he was traded at the deadline to the Boston Red Sox. Rookie Brian Anderson was off to a great start, but as he started to decline, other options were brought in and Anderson quickly lost his job.
Brewers Two Best Options for 3B
In his end-of-season press conference, general manager Matt Arnold was asked about position players and who he sees at third base.
Arnold had mentioned two names: Andruw Monasterio and one of the Brewers’ top prospects in Tyler Black. Monasterio came up from the minors and was a very powerful addition to the roster, but defensively didn’t have the power like he did when the bat was in his hands.
Tyler Black struggled to stay healthy in 2022 but his 2023 campaign blew all expectations of him out of the water. Across Double- and Triple-A, he had a combined stat line of .284/.417/.513 with 25 doubles, 12 triples, 18 homers, and 55 stolen bags.
Black was listed alongside Jackson Chourio as the Milwaukee Brewers’ Robin Yount Performance Award winners as Minor League Players of the Year.
Andruw Monasterio was a name that ended up being a surprising, yet strong contribution to the Brewers as they ran their pennant chase.
Monasterio made his major league debut against the Chicago Cubs on May 28th of this year. He signed a minor league contract with the Brewers in November of 2021 where he played nearly 150 games across both Double- and Triple-A.
Prior to his debut, he was batting .271 with 19 RBIs, 38 hits, four home runs and an OPS of .810. The third baseman would receive his callup after Willy Adames had a trip to the IL, and while he was hitless in his debut, he got his first two career hits just two days later and would get his first big league home run in his sixth game as a Brewer.
Both Black and Monasterio could play huge roles for Milwaukee next season. Now that Anderson has been released by the team, the future of Owen Miller is uncertain, and Josh Donaldson being a free agent and someone who was alright in the position, but not stellar, having these two split time at third base wouldn’t be a bad idea for the team to entertain.
For More Wisconsin Sports:
Follow me on Twitter at @sarahspooon and follow us at @WiSportsHeroics. For all things Wisconsin sports, click here! We cover everything from the Milwaukee Bucks, Green Bay Packers, Milwaukee Brewers, and Wisconsin Badgers!
