Andrew Vaughn's Injury Started a First Base Crash Course for Trio of Brewers

[Jack Stern]

Image courtesy of © Mark Hoffman/Milwaukee Journal Sentinel / USA TODAY NETWORK and Benny Sieu via Imagn Images

 

At the end of last season, Brandon Lockridge approached Pat Murphy about playing infield to be more valuable to the Brewers. Primarily an outfielder as a professional, Lockridge played second base in college and started four games there for the New York Yankees' Triple-A team in 2024.

Murphy liked the idea, but he had a different infield position in mind.

"He's like, 'Have you ever played first base?'" Lockridge recalled. "That's probably one of the few positions on the field that I've never touched before in my entire life, but I said I'd be open to trying it."

Lockridge incorporated ground ball work as a first baseman into his offseason training, but only with the expectation of being an emergency option at the position. He didn't take any reps there in spring training until the Brewers returned to Milwaukee. Two days before Opening Day, the coaching staff sent him there to receive balls during batting practice. Hours later, he moved to first base for the ninth inning of their exhibition game against the Cincinnati Reds.

"It was that day that I played in the game that was my first day receiving balls over there," he said. "And then the ninth inning comes around, they were like, 'Hey, you got your [first base] glove out here?' I was like, 'Yeah, sounds good.'"

With Andrew Vaughn sidelined for the next several weeks by a left hamate fracture, Lockridge is one of three students in a sudden first base crash course with third base and infield coach Matt Erickson. Backup catcher Gary Sánchez and utility infielder Luis Rengifo are also working there to fill Vaughn's role as a right-handed-hitting counterpart to Jake Bauers.

The first lesson? Receiving. Everything else (fielding ground balls, positioning, and holding runners) is secondary to footwork around the bag and knowing when and how to stretch toward a throw.

"Let's face it, you can go to first base and not get a single ground ball, but you're going to have to receive," Erickson said. "And if we can't have somebody finish the play, then everything that happens before that doesn't really matter."

Of the three, only Sánchez entered the season with big-league experience at first base, albeit just 16 2/3 career innings. As such, the Brewers felt most comfortable giving him the first crack there and have started him twice at first against left-handed starters.

Once Rengifo is familiar with the nuances of the position, he could receive more of that playing time. As an infielder, Erickson believes he has the easiest transition.

"When you have a guy like a [Andruw] Monasterio or a Rengifo that's on the dirt already, especially at a corner, the timing of the ground balls is not that big a deal," Erickson said. "They're used to that part of it. What's foreign to them is receiving and holding runners and knowing what kind of picks they're going to get from the pitcher."

Lockridge said the Brewers have not indicated that Vaughn's injury will lead to more game reps at first base. That's because he's third on that totem pole, facing a greater learning curve as he moves in from the outfield.

"Because [catchers are] used to the speed of every pitch, they're not really wowed by the ball getting to them at 90 feet or 100 feet away," Erickson said. "With an outfielder, you've got to go kind of the opposite, because they're not used to the ball being on them that fast."

Outfielders immediately judge every fly ball and start running toward it to make the catch or back up the outfielder making the play. A first baseman must immediately break toward the bag once he knows a ground ball is out of his fielding range.

"Ball's put in play, my instinct is to see the play," Lockridge said. "As a first baseman, the second the ball's hit on the infield, you've got to be busting to first base to pick the ball up and position your feet [on the base]. So that's kind of the thing during BP, they're hitting fungoes to the infielders, and I try to play it like a game, run to first base and pick the ball up."

Given his brief infield experience, though, he's not starting from square one. He and Sal Frelick are the club's top choices as a fifth infielder should it need one late in a tie game.

"If you can pick balls at second, I'd like to think I can pick them at first," Lockridge said.

"You don't see it much, an outfielder coming from the grass to the dirt," Erickson said. "You see a lot of infielders go to the grass. But Lockridge is unique because he has some infield time, and he has some experience at second base."

Even if Sánchez and Rengifo are the leading candidates for more time at the cold corner, all three will continue prepping for the position.

"The work is all applicable when it comes to approaching balls hard in the outfield and trusting your hands," Lockridge said. "So at the end of the day, it makes me a better outfielder, practicing as a first baseman, I'll take that."

 

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[Profbratsch]

Brandon has demonstrated for us the heart of a true team player. Whatever it takes to help, even if it involves stepping a bit out of his comfort zone to do so. I hope he is a mainstay of the Brewers for a long time!

[Matthew Trueblood]

32 minutes ago, Profbratsch said:

Brandon has demonstrated for us the heart of a true team player. Whatever it takes to help, even if it involves stepping a bit out of his comfort zone to do so. I hope he is a mainstay of the Brewers for a long time!

I like that Jack reported this out this way; it really illustrates why Murphy has loved Lockridge since the moment he came through the door. I agree with you; he's the type you hope will be around for a few years.

[Harold Hutchison]

Makes me miss Wes Clarke...

[Matthew Trueblood]

29 minutes ago, Harold Hutchison said:

Makes me miss Wes Clarke...

Haha. I feel you, Harold, but *everything* makes you miss Wes Clarke, no? 😜

[Joseph Zarr]

<Secretly grateful Harold didn't use this as a means to push for Darrien Miller to build upon his already massive 1B resumé🤭>

[sveumrules]

3 hours ago, Harold Hutchison said:

Makes me miss Wes Clarke...

Clarke announced his retirement this spring, but Cooper Hummel is still plying his trade for Yokohama in the Japan Central League (pay no attention to the 584 OPS and 35.7 K% though).

[Frisbee Slider]

1 hour ago, sveumrules said:

Clarke announced his retirement this spring, but Cooper Hummel is still plying his trade for Yokohama in the Japan Central League (pay no attention to the 584 OPS and 35.7 K% though).

Wes Clarke retirement covered by Newsweek, of all outlets https://www.newsweek.com/sports/mlb/former-astros-brewers-prospect-retires-at-age-26-11485953