In the Milwaukee Brewers’ 5-2 win over the Phillies on Sunday, third baseman Caleb Durbin notched another hit, his sixth in four games, and scored the game-tying run on an error in the 7th inning. It wasn’t as dramatic as his walk-off sacrifice fly Wednesday against Boston, but, critically, Durbin continues to show life at the plate after an abysmal stretch to begin the month of May.
Durbin Is Hitting .333 in His Last 11 Games
On the season, Durbin’s numbers aren’t pretty. Even with his recent surge, Milwaukee’s rookie third baseman is hitting .221 and a .623 OPS, with one homerun and 21 RBIs. With Joey Ortiz moving from third to shortstop, the Brewers lack alternatives at the hot corner. Despite Durbin’s struggles, they haven’t had much choice but to keep trotting him out there. The team is depending on him to play at least a serviceable third base. Recently, at least, he has done so.
Since May 21, covering 11 games, Durbin has gone 14 for 42 (.333), smacking six doubles and driving in seven runs. His homerun power remains lacking, but extra base thump of any kind is an encouraging sign. Interestingly, Durbin also has four steals in his last thirteen games, compared to one the rest of the season.
Needless to say, it is a relief to see him get back on track; hopefully he can sustain a baseline level of production. He actually had a decent April, slashing .263/.356/.395 in 38 at bats, but a 5 for 51 slump afterward dissolved any good feeling. With Ortiz also struggling dreadfully, the Brewers had no production whatsoever from that side of the infield. Compare that to last year, when Ortiz and Willy Adames combined for 43 homeruns, 172 RBIs and 5.7 Wins Above Replacement.
As a rookie, Durbin was not expected to replicate a veteran’s production, but as such, his play this season is all there is to judge him by. A slow start is less concerning when a player has the track record to suggest that a turnaround is coming. Credit to Durbin, he has allayed some of that concern for now.
Better Version of Durbin Supporting Milwaukee Brewers’ Win Streak
Durbin’s improvements haven’t come in the batter’s box alone. His performance in the field has been better, too, as suggested by a four-run increase in defensive runs saved, from -1 to +3, in less than three weeks. Some of that may be the variance of a small sample, heavily influenced by a handful of good plays (and defensive metrics overall tend to be inconsistent from season to season, to say nothing of month to month), but whichever way you cut it, the reversal is a positive indicator.
At the plate, his own improved hitting coincides with hot streaks from Jackson Chourio and Christian Yelich. The latter left Sunday’s game after being hit by the pitch (X-rays negative), but mashing from those two have helped key the Brewers’ seven-game win streak. Durbin’s lesser but significant contributions have supported the team’s offensive upswing following an ice-cold start.
A sight for sore eyes, Ortiz has also picked it up a little since hitting his first homerun of the season late last month. If that trend continues, and if Durbin can maintain some level of productiveness at third, the bottom of Milwaukee’s lineup will look a lot different than the sinkhole it has been for much of the season.
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