Ranking The Still Available Free Agent First Basemen For The 2024 Brewers

The "Retirement Tour" Tier

Carlos Santana, Justin Turner, Joey Votto

This tier is nearing the end of their illustrious careers but are on the lookout for one year deals to keep going until they can't play anymore. The Brewers, likely looking for short-term solutions given their corner infield prospects in the upper minors, would be amenable to a grizzled veteran like any of these three names.

Carlos Santana, 38, is the most oft-connected name to Milwaukee. He joined the Brewers last season at the Trade Deadline and played well down the stretch. Santana and the Brewers have been in contact about a reunion and he may be the most likely solution at first base.

Justin Turner, 39, finally left the Dodgers and played for the Red Sox last year. He proved he's still a productive hitter even into his late-thirties and he hasn't shown any signs of slowing down yet. Turner was a previous free agent target of the Brewers front office and they could always look to pursue him again. He'd be an instant upgrade to this Milwaukee lineup.

Joey Votto, 40, is a familiar name in Milwaukee, having tortured Brewers pitching for the last many years with the Cincinnati Reds. The Reds declined his contract option, making Votto a free agent for the first time in his career. Votto isn't as good as he once was, dealing with injuries and hitting just .202 last year, but still slugging 14 homers and posting a 99 OPS+.

Votto still wants to play but hasn't found a ton of interest. At his age and recent injury history, Votto's looking at a part-time role. Santana or Turner would be likelier everyday solutions, making them likelier choices for the Brewers front office.

The "Possible Multi-Year Deal" Tier

Garrett Cooper, CJ Cron

The Brewers generally haven't given out long-term contracts to free agent first basemen, or really any free agents in recent years. But if they're going to find a multi-year solution on the free agent market for even just two or three years, the most likely bets may be Garrett Cooper and CJ Cron.

Cooper, 33, was an All Star in 2022 for the Marlins. This past season, he slugged a career high 17 homers. Cooper's a career .268 hitter with a .772 OPS and 109 OPS+ in his seven big league seasons. The former Brewers farmhand grades as a solid defender, which the Brewers covet and he was in the 95th percentile in sweet-spot % last year. Cooper could certainly be deserving of a two or three year deal.

Cron, 34, is a one-time All Star with a career .260 average, .791 OPS, and 111 OPS+. He's usually good for 25-30 homers a season and has never had a full season with a batting average below .248. Cron has spent the last couple years in Colorado, which may have inflated his numbers a bit. His home/road splits were quite extreme, but he was a productive hitter before he arrived in Colorado. His walk rate is low and his strikeout rate in manageable. Cron dealt with injuries in 2023 but is healthy for 2024.

A short 2-3 year contract at a reasonable annual value should be on the table for these two players. They're entering their mid-thirties and have been solidly productive in their careers. The Brewers would instantly upgrade their offense with either of these two players.

The "Wrong Side Platoon" Tier

Brandon Belt, Dominic Smith

Platoons are always a possibility with the Brewers. They've utilized them at first base in the past and could do so again in 2024. Jake Bauers is a left-handed platoon option currently on the roster, which leaves him to face the right handed pitchers. That means someone else would have to be the right-handed option to pair with him in a platoon.

Unfortunately, the top platoon first basemen available are also left handed hitters, so they wouldn't pair well with Bauers. Still, Brandon Belt or Dominic Smith would be clear upgrades over Bauers for Milwaukee.

Belt has been a Brewers killer when he was with the Giants. He mashes righties still, posting a 2.0 bWAR with 19 homers and a 136 OPS+ last season for Toronto while earning just 34 ABs against lefties. He'd be affordable in the Brewers desired price range, but with Bauers already on the roster, Milwaukee would likely go in a different direction.

Ditto for Dominic Smith. He received everyday time with the Nationals last year because Washington was not trying to compete. He posted an OPS below .700 last year, but had a .737 OPS against righties with 10 of his 12 homers. Smith would be a solid lefty option in a platoon but the Brewers need a righty option if they go with a platoon.

The "Looking For A Bounce Back" Tier

Trey Mancini, Jared Walsh, Wil Myers

The Brewers do love bringing in bounce back options. Jesse Winker was a bounce back candidate last year, although that didn't work out very well. Ditto for Jackie Bradley Jr previously, also no success. However, Rowdy Tellez was able to bounce back once the Brewers got him, as did Daniel Vogelbach, so there are some successes.

Each of these three players are coming off awful seasons in 2023. Trey Mancini was a very productive player for the Orioles for years, but ever since he left Baltimore, he's struggled. Mancini went from three and a half seasons of above-average OPS+ production, to dropping into the 70s in OPS+. Mancini can hit for average and power when he's right and even though Milwaukee isn't Baltimore, it's a productive hitters environment where he could bounce back.

Jared Walsh had back to back great seasons for the Angels in 2020 and 2021, including an All-Star nod in 2021. His bat has quickly deteriorated over the last two years though. A large part of that could be blamed on neurological issues Walsh was dealing with that impacted his ability to see the baseball, dealing with vertigo, tremors, and a lack of spatial awareness. Walsh has been improving and if the Brewers think he's finally past those issues, he'd be a solid bounce back candidate.

Wil Myers had posted above-average production in eight of his first 10 seasons in the big leagues, including three in a row when the 2023 season got started. He had the worst year of his career in 2023, playing in just 37 games before being released in June by the Reds. He was not able to latch on with anyone else for the remaining three months of the season.

There's several different directions the Brewers could go at first base, but they need to pick someone from one of these tiers, or the trade market, to address the biggest need on the roster.