Brewers Video
Though fans particularly malign the lack of thump against left-handed pitchers, the Brewers also haven't been raking against righties of late, and Jesse Winker (their left-hitting, righty-mashing offseason import at DH) is right in the middle of those problems. Overall, the Crew is getting just a .216/.319/.313 batting line from their designated hitters, with Winker (who's hitting .214/.341/.257 in that role) getting about 60 percent of the playing time.
A free agent at year's end, Winker is not someone in whom the team is especially invested. They got him in exchange for Kolten Wong, who has been terrible with the Mariners, and they also got Abraham Toro in that deal, so they don't even need to call that swap a wash if they cut bait with Winker. That's not to say that they're (yet) close to doing so, but it would be both actually and psychologically easy to do so based on what Winker cost and the lack of upside in giving him endless opportunities.
The problem, of course, is the lack of good, obvious alternatives to Winker at that position. If the Brewers had a player raking on their bench, they would already have gone to them. Neither Owen Miller nor Mike Brosseau has had an inspiring start. Luke Voit's struggles have been well-documented. All three of those players are right-handed hitters, too, which makes it hard to justify replacing Winker with any of them. At Triple-A Nashville, the guy looking most like a viable DH in MLB is Keston Hiura, whose history and roster status both make entrusting him with that job unlikely.
There is one hitter who has looked great this year, though, who is already on the roster, and who bats left-handed (at least against righties). The biggest hurdle to giving him time at DH is the position he plays otherwise. It's Victor Caratini, the team's backup catcher. He's hitting .300/.417/.450, with better numbers against righties than against lefties. In 48 plate appearances, he's drawn eight walks and struck out only seven times, and he hits the ball hard. The big weakness in his offensive game--that he hits far too many ground balls to consistently tap into his power--is comparatively untroubling. He's not likely to sustain an OPS over .850 all season, but those underlying skills are promising. Since the start of 2021, against righties, he's batted .226/.322/.358--hardly scintillating, but a step up from what the Brewers are currently getting.
Caratini is, of course, primarily a catcher. Putting him and William Contreras in the lineup together poses inherent logistical risks, which is why Craig Counsell has done so only three times this season--all against left-handed starters. That might need to change at some point, as the team tries to get better production out of a position at which only offense matters. The arrival of Sal Frelick or Jackson Chourio would open up different options, like using Christian Yelich or Tyrone Taylor as the DH. The eventual return of Luis Urias could displace Brian Anderson on the infield and force him to find some of his time at DH. For various reasons, though, those things are still far off on the horizon. In the meantime, the team should give Caratini a shot at infusing some offense.
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