Milwaukee Brewers: 3 best DH options for shortened season

2. Jedd Gyorko

The last couple seasons haven’t been great for Gyorko. But in 2017 with the St. Louis Cardinals, and when he was healthy, he posted a solid slash-line (.272/.341/.472) with 20 home runs, 21 doubles and 67 RBI. In 2016 with the Cardinals, he hit 30 home runs.

Gyorko can play multiple positions. But that doesn’t mean he plays any of them particularly well, and any significant value he brings is at the plate. He’s in line to see most of his time at third base for the Brewers this year, likely in a fairly strict platoon with Eric Sogard. On the days he doesn’t play third, or somewhere else as a very occasional fill-in, DH could be the spot for him to get some at-bats.

Gyorko seems to have plenty of pop left in his bat, with a career-high 42.6 percent hard hit rate (according to FanGraphs) last year in his injury-shortened time. A closer look at his batted ball data shows a major spike in infield fly balls last year (18.5 percent), which can be attributed to the back, wrist and calf issues that bothered him. At last check, a healthy back, two healthy legs and two fully functioning wrists are pretty important to hitting.

The Brewers have to find value in the margins, and a healthy Gyorko is a lefty crusher who can provide position utility even if defense is not his calling card. The universal DH is the friend of someone like Gyorko, in 2020 and going forward.