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Milwaukee Brewers Exercise Kolten Wong’s Club Option

By Harrison Carter

CINCINNATI, OHIO - SEPTEMBER 24: Kolten Wong #16 of the Milwaukee Brewers throws to first base in the ninth inning against the Cincinnati Reds at Great American Ball Park on September 24, 2022 in Cincinnati, Ohio. (Photo by Dylan Buell/Getty Images)
CINCINNATI, OHIO - SEPTEMBER 24: Kolten Wong #16 of the Milwaukee Brewers throws to first base in the ninth inning against the Cincinnati Reds at Great American Ball Park on September 24, 2022 in Cincinnati, Ohio. (Photo by Dylan Buell/Getty Images) /
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The first substantial news of the Milwaukee Brewers offseason has broken.

On Tuesday, the club announced that it is exercising second baseman Kolten Wong’s $10 million team option to return for the 2023 season. The team option also included a $2 million buyout, meaning that the Brewers would have paid $2 million if they decided to not pick up the option.

What to know about the Milwaukee Brewers picking up Kolten Wong’s club option for 2023

Wong, 32, is coming off of a fairly disappointing second year with the Crew. Last year, Wong slashed .251/.339/.430 with 15 home runs. Offensively, Wong was serviceable and was extremley hot towards the end of the season.

Defensively, however, Wong was uncharacteristically poor. Out of the 29 defenders that logged 500 or more innings at second base this past season, Wong was the third worst in FanGraph’s Defensive Runs Above Average statistic (Def) and dead last in FanGraph’s Ultimate Zone Rating statistic (UZR). For reference, in 2021 there were 28 second basemen who logged at least 500 innings at the position. Wong was the fourth highest in UZR.

In a talk with the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel’s Todd Rosiak, Wong attributed some of his defensive struggles to injuries to his legs and core that restricted his athleticism and in turn prevented him from being an elite level defender like he has been for the vast majority of his career. Wong was placed on the injured list in June with a calf strain and missed a couple of games in September with knee soreness.

Exercising the team option means one less position to worry about for the Milwaukee Brewers. When healthy, Wong is an everyday plug-and-play second baseman. With a full offseason for his body to recover with the addition of the shift being banned next year, Wong seems destined for a bounce back year defensively.

As for the Brewers, this is the first of a long line of decisions that will have to be made this offseason. Brad Boxberger’s team option must be decided on by Thursday. The Crew also have 18 players that are arbitration eligible, including some of their best players such as Corbin Burnes, Brandon Woodruff, and Willy Adames. This offseason will be full of news as the Brewers attempt to rebound after a disappointing 2022 season.

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