Milwaukee Brewers: The Top 5 First Basemen in Franchise History

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ST LOUIS, MO – OCTOBER 13: Prince Fielder #28 of the Milwaukee Brewers gestures after he hit a double in the top of the fourth inning against the St. Louis Cardinals during Game 4 of the National League Championship Series at Busch Stadium on October 13, 2011 in St. Louis, Missouri. (Photo by Christian Petersen/Getty Images) /

Number 2: Prince Fielder

Years as a Brewer: 2005-2011

Who could forget Prince Fielder? Fielder was a blue-chip prospect for Milwaukee from the time he was drafted in the first round of the 2002 draft. The son of former big-leaguer Cecil Fielder, Prince was the closest thing to a sure-fire success.

And succeed he did. The younger Fielder pushed his way to the major leagues as a 21 year old in 2005 and blasted 28 homers in his first complete season. A monstrous .929 OPS with the team to go with two All-Star selections, two Silver Slugger awards and three top-five MVP finishes… what’s not to like?

In 2007, Fielder hit 50 home runs, leading the league as a 23 year old. In five full seasons as the starter, Fielder never had an OPS+ below 110 and was as consistent and healthy as they come. Prince had three top 5 MVP finishes as a Brewer.

Well, there are two reasons Fielder isn’t sitting atop this list. For one, as is the case with many other names, he wasn’t in Milwaukee all that long. Six seasons is a relatively long time compared to others on the list, but he bolted for more money as soon as he had the opportunity. Additionally, he was a liability on defense. Fielder ironically was a below-average fielder every season with Milwaukee, averaging 11 errors per season in Milwaukee. Who does that leave as number one, then?

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