Same plan for Aguilar after earning job
PHOENIX – For the first time in his major-league career, Jesús Aguilar is in a position where he can breathe easy.
Thanks to a breakout 2018 season that saw him rise from relative anonymity to all-star, the 28-year-old reported to spring training earlier in the week as the unquestioned starter at first base.
The situation is a far cry from each of his previous two springs with the Milwaukee Brewers, when he was forced to sweat out his spot on the opening-day roster up to the final days of camp.
Aguilar hasn’t forgotten the struggle despite his newfound status. So he plans on sticking with the mentality that’s gotten him to this point, which is to not take anything for granted and earn his way back onto the team.
“I’m just going to try to do it the same way,” he said. “That worked for me before, so I don’t have to change it up. I just try to control what I can control, I just try to do things the right way, and let’s see what happens.
“The last 4-5 years I’ve been fighting for a spot, and those years I had good years. So, I’m trying to set my mind to do the same thing. Control what I can control, have fun, try to do things the right way and that’s it.”
When president of baseball operations David Stearns claimed Aguilar off waivers from the Cleveland Indians on Feb. 2, 2017, the transaction barely registered as a blip on the radar screen.
But just over two years later it stands as a hugely important move, one that solidified a position that had been in flux ever since Prince Fielder departed Milwaukee via free agency following the 2011 season.
Aguilar used a huge Cactus League season (.452 average, seven home runs, 19 runs batted in, 1.376 OPS) to force his way onto his first openingday roster in 2017. He went on to hit .265 with 16 homers and 65 RBI as the right-handed-hitting option to Eric Thames at first base and manager Craig Counsell’s best pinch-hitting option.
As impressive as Aguilar’s performance was, he entered last spring third in the pecking order at first base behind Thames and Ryan Braun, who was being tried at the position after the offseason additions of outfielders Christian Yelich and Lorenzo Cain.
Aguilar ultimately hit .262 with two homers and seven RBI in Cactus League play. But he had no minorleague options remaining, meaning the Brewers almost surely would have lost him to another team had they not found a way to find a spot for him on the roster.
They did, and it didn’t take long for Aguilar to seize on a golden opportunity. With Braun already back to playing in the outfield, Thames suffered an injury to his left thumb while fielding a ball at first base. He underwent surgery and missed 41 games.
Aguilar stepped in, grabbed the job and never gave it up. He went on to hit .298 with 24 homers and 70 RBI in the first half while compiling a .995 OPS – numbers that earned him his first berth in the All-Star Game after an allout media blitz by the Brewers helped get him in via Final Vote.
It was quite the feel-good story for Aguilar, who also competed in Home Run Derby as part of the all-star festivities.
The second half was a different story for Aguilar, though, as he hit .245/ 11/38/.760 over his final 62 games.
“The first half was really good for me and I wanted to continue with that, and when I didn’t and I slumped I got kind of frustrated for a little bit,” Aguilar said. “I just want to try and change that (frustration). I know those things are going to happen. I know 0 for 10s are going to come, so I’ve just got to be ready for those situations and just try to stay positive.
“Baseball is up and down, so I’ve got to handle that.”
Even with the slow second half, Aguilar finished with a .274 average and .890 OPS to go along with 35 homers and 108 RBI over 149 games (119 starts at first base).
He also proved his mettle as a pure hitter, ranking among the league’s best with two strikes and putting together maybe the Brewers’ most impressive at-bat of the season last April 21, when he won a 13-pitch battle with Marlins pitcher Junichi Tazawa with a walk-off homer.
“Jesús’s challenge is he just wants to become better offensively,” manager Craig Counsell said. “His offensive profile is really unique right now. He hits the ball really hard. The amount of damage he did with two strikes makes you wonder can he do it again and what about earlier in the count?
“There’s probably some give and take in there in how he sets up at-bats for himself a little bit. But I think the offensive output is the biggest calling card for Jesús, and when you put up a first half like that (in 2018) you ask yourself, ‘Why can’t you do that the whole season?’ ”
Aguilar played 16 games in the Venezuelan Winter League in the offseason and reported to camp on Tuesday down about 15 pounds to leave him “around 280-something.” Aguilar is nimble enough at his size to have played a couple games at third base in 2018, and he believes keeping the weight off will benefit him in the long run.
“I want to stay around 280-something the whole year,” he said. “It’s going to be tough for me, but I want to be in my best condition to try and do great things again this year.”
So what can be expected of Aguilar this season?
“It’s a Jesús Aguilar with more experience,” he said. “I was in situations last year I had never been in before with the postseason and the All-Star Game, and I learned from that. Now I’ve got to be on the same page, stay focused and play my game.”
Added Counsell: “He’s still a young major-league hitter. He’s a smart, smart hitter, and he’s always going to look for ways to use that to his advantage.”
Thames, who remained a good teammate despite losing substantial playing time in the wake of Aguilar’s ascension, now stands as the backup at first base with the ability to also play some outfield.
“As we sit here a year ago today, the conversation has just flipped,” Counsell said. “Eric is on the team. We were honestly debating that with Jesús. He fit, but we were wondering where he was going to play. There’s certainly spots for Eric to play. We’ll find spots for Eric to play.
“The challenge for Eric is that he’s going to enter the season in a spot where getting on track might be a little more difficult because the at-bats, as we sit now, aren’t going to be as regular. But quickly, they could become regular. And that’s depth.”
Thames’ left-handed power bat adds a valuable dimension to the roster, as he’s hit 47 homers and driven in 100 runs in 234 games since coming to the Brewers prior to the 2017 season. But his propensity for striking out and struggles against left-handed pitching (.185 last year) work against him.
The possibility also remains Milwaukee could look to move Thames at some point this spring. He’s scheduled to make $6 million this season with the club holding a $7.5 million option for 2020 with a $1 million buyout.
“There’s always rumors going around, but you can’t ever listen to that stuff,” he said. “There’s a million rumors every day about (Manny) Machado and (Bryce) Harper. You never know what’s going to happen."
By the numbers
.869 Combined OPS compiled by Milwaukee first basemen in 2018, a figure that ranked fourth in the major leagues.
132 Total runs driven in by Milwaukee first basemen in 2018, most in the major leagues.
44 Total homers hit by Milwaukee first basemen in 2018, most in the major leagues.
2 Walkoff homers hit by Aguilar in 2018 (April 21 vs. Miami and June 22 vs. St. Louis), the first of his career.
.216 Aguilar’s batting average in 10 postseason games (8 for 37, two homers, five RBI).