Brewers' shortstop plans appear to have shifted after Brice Turang's untimely injury

Who is playing second base? Who is at shortstop? Those have been two grueling questions the Milwaukee Brewers having been trying to answer this spring and depending upon when asked, the response would have been different.

Right now, it appears as if Joey Ortiz, who played third base last year, has regained control as the favorite to play shortstop. Brice Turang, who won a Platinum Glove at second base last year, is more likely to stick at second base.

This most recent change in thinking, despite manager Pat Murphy saying that if he was a betting man he'd bet on Turang playing shortstop this season, has come about due to Turang dealing with a right shoulder issue. He's been kept out of the lineup the past few days as a result, throwing hasn't gone well, and it could be at least another three to five days before he's good to go again.

What does this mean for the Milwaukee Brewers longterm plans at shortstop?

Prior to Turang's shoulder issue being a factor, the Brewers announced that they were wanting to assign primary positions to both Turang and Ortiz. Now that Turang is having issues with his throwing shoulder and despite a clean MRI, putting him back into a position that requires more strain on the arm is not a smart move.

For at least the start of the 2025 season, Ortiz appears set to be the shortstop. He logged 2,095 innings at the position throughout his time in the minor leagues. The 26 year-old has the range, glove, and arm strength to be an excellent defender at the position and is more than capable of excelling this year.

In a lot of ways, this issue really vindicates the Brewers' strategy of valuing versatility as much as they do. Milwaukee has a number of guys in camp right now (Oliver Dunn, Caleb Durbin, etc.) that can slot in right now to help in the infield which is pretty wild when you consider that the Brewers lost Willy Adames and now have Turang dinged up.

Once Turang's shoulder issue improves, he will likely head back to second base. There has been no indication that this will cause him to start the year on the injured list, but Opening Day is less than two weeks away so his status will be worth monitoring.

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