Milwaukee Brewers select local product Alex Binelas in third round of 2021 MLB Draft

Everyone loves a good local story, and the Milwaukee Brewers just found themselves one near the top of the 2021 MLB Draft board. In the third round, the Brewers selected Oak Creek native Alex Binelas, a junior infielder who had been playing at Louisville.

Binelas, who just turned 21 in May, was taken in the 35th round by the Nationals out of high school but did not sign. He posted some solid numbers during his three years at Louisville, hitting a cumulative .272/.363/.608 with 33 home runs and seven steals in 480 plate appearances across 111 games. After getting just seven at-bats during the pandemic-shortened 2021 season, Binelas got off to a slow start this year before finishing with a .256/.348/.621 slash line and 19 home runs in 230 plate appearances. Binelas played predominantly at third base during his first full year at Louisville, but moved across the diamond and spent most of his time at first this past season.

Binelas was ranked as the #77 prospect by Baseball America before the draft, here is some of what they had to say about him:

(77) Alex Binelas

BA Grade: 45 | Risk: High
Hit: 45 | Power: 65 | Run: 40 | Field: 45 | Arm: 45

Binelas entered the 2021 season as one of the better in-game power hitters of the 2021 class, with a chance to go in the top half of the first round. He has slid down draft boards after getting off to an extremely slow start with the bat and moving across the diamond from third base to first...teams have struggled to look past how lost he looked at the plate early, in addition to a 22% strikeout rate. Binelas does have massive raw power out of a strong, 6-foot-3, 225-pound frame and he distributed his homers from the left-center gap to the right-center gap, with some scouts assessing his raw power as 70-grade...Binelas’ power output and walk rates are impressive and scouts who like him appreciate his plate discipline and all-fields approach. Teams entered the year hoping he would prove his ability at third base...but now he’s a likely first baseman. Some scouts think he might be athletic enough to handle left field.

The slot value for pick #86 is $699,700.