10 Players You Might Have Forgotten Were Milwaukee Brewers

When I was a kid, I loved collecting baseball cards just as much as the next kid. I probably knew more about baseball from collecting cards than watching the actual games. I’m still pretty sure I gave my uncle a Ken Griffey Jr. card worth money for a Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Casey Jones action figure. Who does that to a kid?

Anyways, one of my first memories of card collecting was one day getting a B.J. Surhoff card. But he was wearing a Baltimore Orioles jersey. I was confused. This couldn’t be. Surhoff was a Milwaukee Brewer! It’s true, B.J was a Brewer from 1987 to 1995. He was then an Oriole from 1996-2000. The former first overall pick played for several teams, but it will always be stuck in my brain that he was a Brewer. It’s weird which players stick with you that long.

Lots of players have come and gone throughout the organization, including players who ALMOST became Brewers. Remember when Wilmer Flores from the New York Mets was told he was going to be a Brewer, then cried because he didn’t want to leave the team and the deal never went through? That actually worked out for the Brewers, who ended up getting Josh Hader from the Houston Astros instead.

But plenty of players, some All-Stars and some random, have come and gone.

There are so many to list, but here are some former Brewers that some fans might have left the old memory bank at some point.

Brewers players you might have forgotten: Nelson Cruz

Nelson Cruz was originally sent to Milwaukee in December of 2004 from the Oakland Athletics along with RHP Justin Lehr. The Brewers sent over Keith Ginter, an infielder who would be done in MLB after the next year. Nelson would make his MLB debut that season. On September 17, 2005, Cruz made his debut for the Brewers. His first hit came on September 28th.

In 2006, he played in Nashville for the Triple-A team. On July 28th, he was included in the trade to the Texas Rangers with Carlos Lee. The Brewers received back Laynce Nix, Kevin Mench, Francisco Cordero and Julian Cordero. It was maybe one of the worst trades the Brewers ever completed.

Cruz would go on to be a seven time All-Star, four time Silver Slugger, ALCS MVP in 2011, AL home run leader in 2014, AL RBI leader in 2017, and is still one of the best power hitters in baseball. Last season, the Dominican Republic native had a .265 average with 32 home runs and 86 RBIs and the age of 41.

He will turn 42 this year, and will no doubt be a designated hitter for some lucky team this season. If the universal DH is passed, I know a certain team that had him for a short while that could use a power hitter…

Brewers players you might have forgotten: Joakim Soria

The 37-year-old reliever appeared in 773 games since his debut in 2007. Soria was only a Brewer for half a season, but it was an important one.

Joakim Soria was added as bullpen depth during the 2018 season right before the trade deadline. He was sent over from the White Sox in exchange for Kodi Medeiros and Wilber Perez. Unfortunately, Soria’s time with the Crew wasn’t his best. He appeared in 26 games, and ended with a 4.06 ERA. He did have 11 holds, but also two blown save opportunities.

Soria would decline his mutual option for the 2019 season and became a free agent. Since then, he’s been on the Oakland Athletics, Arizona Diamondbacks and Toronto Blue Jays. He announced his retirement after the 2021 season.

Brewers players you might have forgotten: Mark Kotsay

If Mark Kotsay sounds familiar, it’s because he was just promoted and will be the Oakland Athletics’ manager next year. Kotsay started as a special assistant in the Padres organization and was eventually a hitting coach. He’s been with the A’s since 2015, and been a bench and quality control coach.

The former outfielder was also a Brewer. He signed a one-year contract in February of 2011, and would appear in 104 games that season as a utility player. Over 233 at-bats, he had a .270 average with three home runs and 31 RBIs.

Yes, Mark Kotsay was a part of the 2011 Brewers team that won the NL Central and lost to the St. Louis Cardinals in the NLCS. Everyone remembers “Beast Mode” with Nyjer Morgan along with Prince Fielder and Ryan Braun. But Mark Kotsay was also there, and was a useful utility man throughout the season.

Brewers players you might have forgotten: Brooks Kieschnick

If you were a fan of the Brewers in early 2000s, you know who Brooks Kieschnick is. In fact, one of my friends still has his jersey. I’ve never been more jealous of a person.

Kieschnick was in Milwaukee during the 2003 and 2004 seasons. The reason he is a legend is because he was the first player in MLB history to hit a home run as a pitcher, designated hitter and pinch hitter in the same season. That happened during the 2003 season. Besides being a pitcher, Brooks played three full games as a left fielder, making him somewhat of a two-way player. Kieschnick walked so Shohei Ohtani could run.

Kieschnick appeared in 74 games a Brewer, and ended with a 2-2 record and ERA of 4.59. As a hitter, he batted .300 in 2003 and .270 in 2004. He had eight home runs, 19 RBIs and 38 hits in Milwaukee. The former first round draft pick retired in 2006, and will turn 50 this year.

Brewers players you might have forgotten: Jim Edmonds

Yes, the World Series champion, four time All-Star and eight time gold glover Jim Edmonds was a Milwaukee Brewer.

After playing with the Anaheim Angels, St. Louis Cardinals, San Diego Padres and Chicago Cubs from 1993 to 2008, Edmonds stayed out the 2009 season. He said he did not receive an acceptable offers, but did return in for the 2010 and signed a minor league deal with the Milwaukee Brewers.

Edmonds played 73 games with the Crew before being traded to Cincinnati Reds. He had a .286 average, eight home runs and 20 RBIs before the trade. The Brewers received Chris Dickerson, and both actually had to clear waivers first because it was during the August waiver trade deadline.

Brewers player you might have forgotten: Marco Estrada

Marco Estrada was claimed off of waivers in early 2010 and made his debut in May. He would only appear in seven games that year for the team, and end with an ERA of 9.53.

He appeared 43 games and started seven in 2011 after being called up to fill in for Zach Greinke while he recovered from his offseason basketball injury. He would then be the team’s go-to long reliever and backup starter for the next few seasons. Estrada was part of the starting rotation in 2013 and 2014. As a full time starter, he went 7-4 with an ERA of 3.87 and 7-6 with an ERA of 4.36. After the 2014 season, he was traded to the Toronto Blue Jays for first baseman Adam Lind.

Estrada would be on the Blue Jays until 2018, and even made the All-Star team in 2016. He hasn’t played on an MLB team since 2019. His overall career stats sit at a record of 62-68, ERA of 4.29 and 1,094 strikeouts.

Estrada is actually still the Brewers franchise leader in WHIP with a career 1.196 WHIP in a Brewers uniform.

Brewers player you might have forgotten: Jody Gerut

Jody Gerut was drafted in the second round of the 1998 draft by the Colorado Rockies and was almost immediately traded to the Cleveland Indians. He made his debut in April of 2003 for the team.

The lefty outfielder would play for the Indians until 2005, and then play with the Chicago Cubs, Pittsburgh Pirates and San Diego Padres before landing in Milwaukee. In 2009, he was traded to the Brewers in exchange for Tony Gwynn Jr.

Gerut will always have his name among the team’s history books. That’s because on May 8th, 2010, Gerut hit for the cycle. He went 4-6 that day and the Brewers won 17-3. Manager Ken Macha joked that he flipped a coin that day whether to start Gerut or Corey Hart, so that explains Macha in a nutshell.

Gerut hit a home run in the second inning, a single in the third, got his triple out of the way in the fifth and finally hit his double in the ninth. Luckily, the Brewers kept hitting that day and Jody got six tries at the plate.

Before that game, he was one-for-21 against right-handed pitchers. On the season, he hit .236 with five home runs and 21 RBIS over 85 games. Gerut would also on the team in 2010, but released in August. He would retire in 2011 after stints with the Padres and Seattle Mariners. But he will always be on the Brewers cycle list along with Mike Hegan, Charlie Moore, Robin Yount, Paul Molitor, Chad Moeller, George Kottaras and Christian Yelich.