Can Darin Ruf Fill the Brewers' Biggest Offensive Need?

The Brewers signed Darin Ruf for one simple reason: he doesn’t look like a deer in the headlights when someone holds the ball in their left hand. He’s historically been an above-average hitter against left-handed pitching, and in a couple of outlier seasons, he’s done a huge amount of damage in those situations. He’s known for having a strong walk rate as well as a big strikeout rate, but hit nine home runs in 158 at-bats last season against left-handers to post a .753 OPS, something the Brewers would take in a heartbeat. Let’s take a little dive into a few more of the numbers, to see what else we can expect from the 37-year-old veteran. 

The Stats

For a man who posted a .904 OPS across 312 plate appearances in 2021 (amid the astounding performance of that year’s whole San Francisco Giants team), last season was a huge letdown in which he couldn’t hit right-handed pitching at all. From what was a 22-walk, 28-strikeout season against southpaws in 2021, with an OPS of 1.004, he struck out almost twice as often in 2022, albeit still doing damage when he made contact. He is a potential rebound candidate, although at 37, it’s more likely his bat has just slowed considerably as well as his eye at the plate.

In a modest 27 at-bats so far this season against left-handers, he’s averaged a 100.2-MPH exit velocity against the fastball; 95.6 against breaking pitches; and 97.5 against offspeed offerings. His minimal time at the plate has led to excessive swing and miss against breaking balls, but he’s crushing the pitches he connects with to the tune of an expected slugging percentage of .539 and an expected batting average of .305. This guy is still hitting, and were it not for how well LaMonte Wade, Jr. is playing, he might not have been cut by San Francisco at all. 

As you can see, he does most of his damage when he can free his arms, and struggles to create quality contact when pitched inside. Despite this, because of his very patient approach at the plate, he has a lower swing rate on the inside portion of the plate, waiting for a pitch he can drive early in the count. One benefit of his experience is that he knows his weaknesses and manages them well.

Another facet of his game is his productivity down in the strike zone, with high exit velocities and lower whiff rates. He recorded eight runs above average against sinkers last season and nine in 2021, with two so far this year. Pitchers like, say, Jordan Montgomery on Tuesday evening will be especially wary of this. He also likes the changeup, which makes sense in that any pitch down in the zone and away from his body has historically been an area of dominance for him.

How he can be used

Ruf is predominantly a pull hitter who is poor defensively, but given that the Brewers are the worst offense in the league against left-handers, he is exactly what they need: a pinch-hitter late on against lefties, and a platoon DH, with the occasional start at first base sprinkled in there.

Expect to see him tonight, and potentially some fireworks, finally, against a left-handed starter.

What do you think of the Brewers new lefty masher?