Grading the Brewers: Sean Halton

This season, the Milwaukee Brewers saw contributions from so many different players that after awhile, it started to give us a sense of this team’s future. Sean Halton helped play a stopgap role for the team.

That said, what grade did Halton’s contributions give him this season?

Sean Halton displayed much versatility with his glove this season.. Mandatory Credit: Charles LeClaire-USA TODAY Sports

For Halton, 2013 was a year in which originally he was just called up to be a body to fill a position. After awhile, Halton began to slip into the major league groove, even though he only played in 42 games this year. He started off on June 27 making his debut in a game in which he would also get his first big league hit. June was a good month, although incredibly short, for Halton as he picked up his first two hits in six at-bats.

July was a pretty harsh month for Halton who eventually moved from the bench to an everyday role. Halton only hit .179/.200/.308 in 39 at-bats during the month, but did smack his first homer and drove in his first two runs. We can’t necessarily say that we should have expected more out of the rookie, but his numbers in Triple-A Nashville this season had been pretty solid. The transition from the minors to the majors is quite the leap, so I think the majority of fans understood that.

Halton didn’t play much at all in August, only six games, but he definitely saw a huge change in September. As the rosters expanded in September, Halton had an assured spot on the team for that month. What was great about Halton in September wasn’t just his increased offensive production (a slash line of .261/.314/.500), but his defensive versatility. He was originally part of that outfield platoon with no direction until Khris Davis stole the show, but Halton found a calling at first base which is something he would consistently begin to get starts at during the final month.

This season may not be a true examination of how he’ll play out, but September was certainly promising. His overall numbers of .238/.291/.396 with four homers and 17 RBIs leave a lot to be desired, but hey, he was a rookie so I cut him some slack. Defensively, Halton is becoming the utility player that they were hoping to get in Taylor Green, but are still waiting for. Halton, provided he does well in Spring Training, has made a case to be the back-up guy for the Brewers next season.

Overall grade for Halton: C