SEASON PREVIEW; Brewers by position - First Base

The baseball season is near, and excitement and wonderment fills the air! Every team's fanbase (besides the Astros) is anxious to see their team exceed expectations and achieve that miracle season. So naturally, with all the excitement about, I'll begin our Brewers season preview by looking at the team's most boring position; first base.

During the positional section of our previews, I'll list all the players that are most likely to make an impact at that position, and give an approximation of what numbers I expect from them. I should preface this by saying that I don't like predicting individual numbers, as it's impossible to know how much playing time Hunter Morris will get or whether or not Corey Hart will get traded. But I'll do it anyway, to make it a little more interesting. It should be noted that the numbers I'm predicting for Alex Gonzalez and Taylor Green include what they'll put up at other positions, too. I'm not expecting 34 home runs out of the first base position. So anyway...

First Base
Corey Hart

                                                             Like a caveman swinging a toothpick, he is                         
                                   
Hart is who he is at this point, which is a power-hitting 3-4 WAR first baseman who strikes out a lot, walks sometimes, and can go through ridiculous hot streaks. He's also aging, which is partially why he's at first base in the first place (attn. Dr. Seuss). Defensively, his range isn't much, but seriously how many first baseman have range anyways? His glove is pretty good there regardless. He'll miss the first month or two of the season recovering from knee surgery and he's in the last year of his deal, so the team would do well to trade him as soon as he's healthy and producing. There were extension talks during the offseason but those have appeared to die down. The numbers below reflect what he'd produce during the entire season, but I doubt it's all in Milwaukee.
.265/.340/.500, 20 HR, 3 SB

Alex Gonzalez

                                                           Pictured: Alex Gonzalez. Not pictured: first base

Gonzo has never played anywhere besides shortstop during his major-league career, which is frankly amazing. But he'll start the 2013 season at first base while Hart recovers and Mat Gamel mourns, which is both amusing and a little sad. He has power and some contact ability but doesn't walk. Gonzalez's bat plays fine at SS, but first base holds a much higher standard that he can't possibly meet. He was a slick fielder at his natural position, but there's no telling how his glove will play at first. After Hart returns, he'll probably continue to see occasional at-bats as a utility infielder.
.250/.290/.390, 7 HR, 2 SB

Taylor Green

                                                                        So dreamy. So Canadian.

Green will fill a utility role and will probably see some platoon time at first. For the most part, his Triple-A raking hasn't shown itself in the majors, though it's hard to take too much stock in what amounts to less than 150 career plate appearances. His glove will probably be okay, but his bat doesn't profile at first base even under the most rosy scenarios. He doesn't have a lot of power and his plate discipline needs some work.
.260/.310/.390, 4 HR, 1 SB

Hunter Morris

                                                            I vote we nickname him "Hunter-Killer Drone"

I've written about Hunter recently, and there's no doubt he's the real wild card here. He probably won't break camp with the team, but if he mashes in AAA he could force the team's hand with Corey Hart. If nothing else, he should see some September at-bats.
.235/.280/.380, 3 HR, 0 SB

"Let's Talk Prospects" - Hunter Morris

Jeffrey Hunter Morris

Profile:

• Born 10/7/1988 (age 24)

• Hometown: Huntsville, AL

• Height: 6'2

• Weight: 200

• College: Auburn University

• Selected by the Brewers in the 4th round (129 overall) of the 2010 Amateur Draft

• Finished last year: AA Huntsville Stars

Bio:

After an impressive career at Grissom High School where he hit .470 with 46 homers, Morris was selected in the second round of the 2007 Amateur Draft by the Boston Red Sox. Morris didn't sign with the Sox and decided to attend college at Auburn instead, where he continued to put up impressive numbers, winning SEC Freshman of the Year in 2008 and SEC Player of the Year in 2010. After being drafted by the Brewers, Morris has improved every year in the system and had his best year in 2012 for his hometown Hunstsville Stars, hitting .303 with 28 home runs and flirting with the Triple Crown on his way to winning Brewers Minor League Player of the Year and Southern League Player of the Year awards.

Scouting report:

As a hitter, Morris has a pretty smooth lefty swing with some uppercut motion that can get a little long at times. He has good raw power and his hit tool has improved significantly since joining the Brewers organization, but his approach at the plate is best described as aggressive and he'll need to improve his plate discipline to be any more than an average regular. Despite good bat speed, he had struggled against lefty pitching in the minors and it's difficult to see that changing at the major-league level.

As a defender, Morris is a good athlete that moves well laterally and possesses an adequate throwing arm. An outfielder in high school, he had a tough time making the transition to first base and was error-prone early on in his minor league career, but cleaned up his mechanics in 2012 and now appears that he can be at least average at the position. 

At this point, Morris' potential as a major leaguer isn't particularly high due to his approach and platoon issues, the most likely outcome being that he should able to carve out a role as a platoon player in the mold of Brandon Moss or Mitch Moreland. However, Morris has worked exceptionally hard to reach his current prospect status after being viewed as more of an organizational player early on, so if he continues to improve his game it's certainly possible that he could become an above-average regular.

What's ahead:

Morris was likely going to begin the 2013 season with AAA Nashville, but the injury to backup first baseman Mat Gamel has thrown a wrench in that plan. With Gamel out for the season and starting first baseman Corey Hart set to miss the first month or two while recovering from knee surgery, Morris is now in the mix to be the starting first baseman on opening day, and assistant GM Gord Ash has already given Morris a vote of confidence. Considering his competition will likely be Bobby Corsby (who sucks), Taylor Green (who's not very good) and Alex Gonzalez (who's never played the position in a major-league game), Morris' chances are probably pretty good.