Brewers sign Travis Ishikawa

The Brewers have signed Travis Ishikawa to a minor league deal. In 665 PA (about a full season), he has a .8 WAR. This is because of his defense, where he has a 1 WAR. At first base, he has an above average fielding percentage (with a warped Range Factor because he often came in as a defensive replacement in many games). In his career, he has saved 14 runs above an average 1st baseman. Offensively, he has a .327 OBP, 91 OPS +, and 1.708 O4S. His Secondary Average is .224, and he has an ISO of .134, neither very impressive. He does have 4.5 Runs Created per Game and a .475 Offensive Winning Percentage. These numbers are pretty average, and one concerning thing is his .330 BABIP. One would expect that to flatten out a little with more plate appearances. He does have slightly more line drives than average hitters, but also hits more groundballs. He homers and walks less than average, which is odd and concerning for a 1st baseman. By no stretch of the imagination is this going to be a high impact signing, but it could be a decent little signing for the Brewers.