Photo Credit: Ian D'Andrea
While the Brewers continue to work on the question marks around their starting lineup, there are less publicized question marks on their bench.
One upside to the Brewers’ oft-used strategy of getting starting pitchers out of the game early is preventing those pitchers from giving their value back at the plate: As a group, Brewers pitchers posted a .339 on-base plus slugging in 2019. That was slightly better than the league average for the position but still extremely poor as compared to position players.
Because the Brewers regularly lift pitchers early, the damage done by weak hitters is minimized. Milwaukee’s starting pitchers batted just 291 times in the team’s 151 games in National League parks, ranking 12th among 15 NL teams. A few of those at bats belonged to Brandon Woodruff, who acquitted himself well with a 10-for-40 line. For the most part, however, the Brewers improved themselves offensively with their pitching strategy.
Those decisions to go to the bench early, however, also created a lot of extra work for the players on the bottom of the roster. The Brewers led the NL with 1010 players used off the bench (including pitchers) in 2019 and were second in the league with 548 plate appearances for players who entered the game as a substitute. That collection of hitters, however, batted just .206 with a .311 on-base percentage and .365 slugging on the season. Their .676 combined OPS was tied for the NL’s fifth worst.
Making matters worse, the Brewers’ best hitter off the bench in 2019 is no longer in the organization. Eric Thames entered 51 games as a sub this year and batted .265 with a .383 on-base and .633 slugging in those contests, drawing 10 walks and hitting five home runs. Removing him from the equation lowers the Brewers’ bench line to .199/.301/.333. That’s still better than letting the pitchers hit, of course, but the difference is getting smaller.
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After Thames, the Brewers’ best hitter off the bench was Manny Piña, who hit a few clutch home runs en route to a .474 slugging percentage and .792 OPS on days when he didn’t start. Beyond him, however, the list of the team’s most-used bench players in 2019 contains several light offensive contributions and names that are no longer on the roster:
- Ben Gamel was the Brewers’ most used bench player with 82 plate appearances and earned some accolades with a few clutch hits but batted just .217 with a .317 on-base and .300 slugging overall in that role.
- Hernan Perez’s on-base struggles were heightened in games where he didn’t start, as he posted a .237 on-base percentage in 60 plate appearances off the bench. He’s no longer in the organization.
- Jesus Aguilar came off the bench 42 times before being traded to the Rays but homered just one time in 49 plate appearances in those games and had a .286 on-base.
- Travis Shaw drew eight walks off the bench for a .353 OBP but batted just .120 in that role during his disastrous 2019 season. He also is no longer in the organization.
- Ryan Braun entered 31 games off the bench but rarely made an impact in that role, collecting just one extra base hit, a double, in 32 plate appearances.
Clearly, the role of top pinch hitter won’t attract as much attention as a starting first baseman, and for good reason. Even a very good bench player will only get to hit 80-100 times in that role, so their impact isn’t comparable to that of a regular position player. As currently constructed, however, it’s a weakness on this roster and one the Brewers will likely rely upon more heavily than most of their rivals.
