Keston Hiura’s first week in the big leagues produced some highs and lows. He produced a single in his first MLB plate appearance and two in his first game, but he followed that by getting on base just two more times in his next 17 plate appearances. A week of firsts continued on Sunday, as his solo homer in the fifth inning was a key part of the Brewers’ win over the Braves.
It’s far too early, of course, to make any kind of judgment on Hiura based on his early MLB numbers. It might be worthwhile, however, to put them in some context. Before Hiura, the Brewers had eight position players make their MLB debuts as top 100 prospects in the Miller Park era. Here’s a look at how some of them started:
Lewis Brinson, 2017
A former first round pick and one of the pivotal players in a trade sending Jeremy Jeffress and Jonathan Lucroy to Texas in 2016, Baseball Prospectus had Brinson as the #12 prospect in all of baseball entering the 2017 season following a hot finish in his first year at the AAA level. The Brewers called Brinson up in June of that year but, unfortunately, his hot bat didn’t come with him.
Brinson finished his first MLB month with an .097 batting average and went back to the minors, where he went on a tear again, batting .404 with a .691 slugging percentage in 22 games before getting the call to the majors again. He lasted just a week the second time before being shut down due to injury. The Brewers eventually sent Brinson to the Marlins in the Christian Yelich deal, but he still hasn’t caught up to his promise. He has a career .561 on base plus slugging in the majors and has been returned to the minors again in 2019.
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Mat Gamel, 2008
Gamel didn’t actually become a top prospect until after his MLB debut: He had a huge season in the AA Southern League in 2008, parlayed it into a September callup that season, then was listed as the #34 prospect in the game by Baseball America before the 2009 season.
Gamel’s 2009 return to the majors did not lead to immediate success: He hit just .220 in his first 64 plate appearances in his first extended MLB playing time. 2009 was also his only extended MLB playing time, as he played in just 43 games combined between the 2010, 2011 and 2012 seasons and has been out of affiliated baseball ever since.
Ryan Braun, 2007
As noted previously, there are some parallels between Keston Hiura’s career path to date and that of Ryan Braun, who also made his MLB debut in May following a season where he put up big numbers in the Arizona Fall League. The Brewers waited just a bit longer with Braun, who debuted on May 25, as compared to Hiura’s May 14.
Braun’s early MLB tenure paid near immediate dividends: He had four hits in his first two games, including his first MLB home run. By the end of June, Braun was already a full-fledged star, batting .349 with a .392 on-base and .643 slugging. He was the National League’s Rookie of the Year that season.
Prince Fielder, 2005
The #7 overall pick in the 2002 draft, Fielder was barely 21 but had already been ranked as the #15 prospect or better by Baseball America for three consecutive seasons when he finally got the call to the majors. The situation was a little unusual, however, as the Brewers called Fielder up to serve as the designated hitter on an interleague road trip: He joined the team for the first time in June but played first base just one time before September.
Fielder appeared in 39 MLB games in his debut season but logged just 62 plate appearances. His numbers were solid if unspectacular, as he posted a .288 batting average and .764 OPS. The following season, with the Brewers having traded Lyle Overbay to clear a spot for him, Fielder played nearly every day, launched 28 home runs and came into his own offensively.
Rickie Weeks, 2003/2005
Weeks was selected with the #2 overall pick in the 2003 draft and reached the majors for the first time later that same year, albeit briefly: He got a cup of coffee with the big club that September and appeared in seven games. Later, Baseball America listed Weeks as the #5 prospect in baseball before the 2004 season and #8 in 2005, when he returned to the majors for 96 appearances.
In his first month as a big league regular Weeks showed much of the skillset (and some of the challenges) that would come to characterize his MLB career. He batted .281 in 18 games in June of 2005 but walked enough to boost his OBP to .395. He also struck out in 20 of his first 64 at bats. By OPS it was the best month of Weeks’ debut season.
Weeks was generally a better Brewer than many fans give him credit for, but he took a while to reach his peak offensively. He had a .760 OPS in his age 22-25 seasons from 2005-08, then he raised it to an .829 mark from 2009-11.
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