The Brewers announced on Saturday morning that INF/OF Brock Holt would be designated for assignment and replaced with a Summer Camp standout.
The Brewers as a whole have struggled offensively through the first third of the season, but with the shortened season, they don’t have time to have players who are in deep slumps to be a part of their roster. That led Milwaukee to make a tough decision.
Brock Holt quickly became a fan-favorite in his short time as a part of the Brewers organization and was a popular dugout presence. But his departure will give way to another utility player who made a solid impression during the scrimmages that led up to the regular season.
Why DFA Brock Holt?
When Brock Holt signed a one-year contract with the Brewers, fans were under the assumption that he was going to be the effective, versatile player that the Red Sox had been used to seeing. That wasn’t really the case once he put on a Brewers uniform.
Through just 36 plate appearances, Holt was hitting a slash line of .100/.222/.100 with nine strikeouts and had yet to get an extra-base hit. Though might not have rendered a DFA announcement had it been a regular 162-game season, with the shortened season, there isn’t time to be doing this poorly at the plate.
Holt is a very versatile defender who can play almost anywhere you put him on the field, but that didn’t hold true when it came to making plate appearances and showing some good offensive numbers. In 2019, he had been hitting a career-best .297 with 31 RBIs and 14 doubles in just 87 games with the Boston Red Sox. But, he’s had very limited time to play as a Brewer and the production has been very minimal.
What Does Jace Peterson Bring?
We previously covered Jace Peterson in a piece back when he originally signed with the team. But in case you might’ve forgotten who he is and what he brings to the table, here’s just a brief rundown of the veteran utility man.
Peterson has been in the majors since 2014. He signed a minor league contract with the Brewers back in December of 2019 but didn’t make the Opening Day roster. He’s another versatile player that can play anywhere you throw him, having played every position on the field except for catcher. Yes, he threw an inning of relief back in 2018 with the Baltimore Orioles where he did record a strikeout.
With the Brewers already having signed Holt, not to mention having plenty of depth going into the season, Peterson would end up being put on the waiting list for a major league roster spot. Now Peterson gets his own chance and there’s a chance we could see him playing the field in the upcoming games.
Brewers fans will certainly miss the popular utility man, Holt. But while it’s sad to see Holt go, hopefully Peterson will be able to provide a spark that he couldn’t for an offense that hasn’t been able to score runs consistently.