Brewers Sign Utility Infielder Daniel Robertson To Majors Deal

The Milwaukee Brewers have finally made a move, signing a free agent infielder to a major league deal.

The Brewers have added to their utility infield depth on Tuesday, signing infielder Daniel Robertson to a one year contract.

Fansided’s Robert Murray was the first to report.

This is just the second major league free agent signing the Brewers have made this offseason, with the first being Luke Maile all the way back in November.

Update: Mark Feinsand has reported the financial details.

Robertson will make less than a million dollars in 2021, but has the potential to earn incentives, which are only likely to kick in should he get regular playing time.

Who Is Daniel Robertson?

Robertson, 26, was a first round pick back by Oakland in 2012 and then was traded to Tampa Bay in the Ben Zobrist deal in 2015. Robertson spent a few years at the big league level in Tampa, never playing in more than 87 games in a season and had his best year in 2018, when he hit .262/.382/.415 with nine homers and a 122 OPS+ in 340 plate appearances.

He was sent to the Giants for cash midway through the 2020 season and then was non-tendered last month after playing in 13 games for the Giants.

Robertson is out of minor league options and has not been a full time starter at any point in his big league career.

Robertson is a utility infielder that can play all over the diamond, including third base, although he has the most experience at second base in the big leagues. Given the Crew’s current depth chart, Robertson is likely to see most of his playing time at the hot corner.

Outside of his outlier year of 2018, Robertson has, quite literally, been a replacement-level player, earning a combined 0.0 fWAR in his other three seasons.

Unless the Brewers are banking on a return to his 2018 production level in only a half-season sample size, the intent for Robertson is to be a replacement player that is a good utility option off the bench, but is unlikely to be a regular member of the starting lineup. Robertson can draw walks at a solid clip and is a good baserunner, but he doesn’t steal many bases.

Brewers president of baseball ops David Stearns loves versatile players and players with minor league options. Robertson is only one of those things.

It’s highly doubtful that this is the answer the Brewers front office has come up with for the third base position in 2021. Look for more moves to come, as this is only the first in what should be a wave of moves before the season begins.

The Brewers still have to address first base and add a starting third baseman to the roster.