2023 Brewers Farm System Positional Preview: Third Base

See Luis Urias, often officially listed as a shortstop, or Jace Peterson, who often was listed as a second baseman at the major league level in the past.

The same holds in the minor leagues, where the options at third often have come from elsewhere on the diamond.

AAA Nashville
Weston Wilson, the primary third baseman for the Sounds in 2022, is now with Philadelphia. That said, the Brewers are not without options – Patrick Dorrian is one option, having posted a .868 OPS with Nashville in 2022. He also faces competition for playing time from natural shortstops Cam Devanney, Brice Turang, and Andruw Monasterio. Much of this will probably shake out when Turang goes to Milwaukee. Owen Miller and Abraham Toro could also be in the mix here.

AA Biloxi
Zavier Warren manned third base late in 2022 for the Shuckers and could easily start there. Still, Tyler Black and Felix Valerio could also be content for playing time at the hot corner down in Mississippi, where Ethan Murray could be on the outside looking in. All have something to prove – for Warren, it’s hitting for average to go with OBP skills and power. Valerio needs to rebound from a somewhat slump-y 2022. Black’s issue is staying off the IL, while Murray’s bat has been a question mark.

A+ Wisconsin
After being drafted in the 7th round of the 2022 amateur draft, Ben Metzinger jumped from the ACL to Wisconsin and flashed some OBP skills and power. Jheremy Vargas was a walk machine at Carolina in 2022 and could be the #2 third baseman, while Alberis Ferrer and Luis Silva could also be moved up to Wisconsin for the bench.

A Carolina
The hot corner is up in the air for the Mudcats, given the many players who cycled through the position in the two ACL teams the Brewers fielded in 2022. Luke Adams and Miguel Briceno performed well in small samples with the ACL Brewers Gold, while Ney Serrano was an OBP machine for the ACL Brewers Blue. Jadher Areinamo, Beyker Pastran, and Alexander Perez also could figure into the mix for the Mudcats.

Rookie Leagues
Johan Barrios and Erick Reyes, OBP machines for the DSL Brewers 2 in 2022, will likely face off with DSL Brewers 1 OBP Gery Holguin, with Jhonny Severino, Angel Pereira, and Richard Rojas also being in the mix. The stakes could be high since the Brewers cut to a single ACL team. 

Overview
The Brewers may be short on “true” third basemen in the system. But Luis Urias has shown that a converted shortstop can work out quite well, which is a good sign for Devanney. Historically, Paul Molitor’s move from second to third offers Tyler Black and Felix Valerio hope. With the shift ban, the Brewers may be able to prevent more runs simply by moving bat-first shortstops to the hot corner while still getting some solid offensive performances.