The Milwaukee Brewers have had a rough start to the 2022 season, ranking near the bottom of Major League Baseball in most offensive categories. Things have gone from bad to worse, as they had to place designated hitter Jesse Winker on the injured list with a cervical strain. Winker underwent disc replacement surgery in his neck over the offseason and has been struggling at the plate this season, hitting only .182 last month.
In his place, the Brewers have called up Abraham Toro from Triple-A Nashville. The 24-year-old infielder had a .762 OPS in 164 plate appearances for the Houston Astros last season, but he has struggled in Triple-A this year with just a .622 OPS in 132 plate appearances.
Milwaukee’s struggles at the plate aren’t limited to the DH spot, as they rank 27th in batting average, 28th in OPS and homers, and 27th in RBI overall this season. The team has used nine different players at the designated hitter position, and will now rotate the spot more often.
Looming over everything is the disappointment of Winker, who was acquired from Seattle in a trade for second baseman Kolten Wong. Winker hit .288 with 82 home runs and a 132 wRC+ for the Cincinnati Reds from 2017 through 2021, but he struggled after being traded to Seattle last year, hitting just .219 with a 90 wRC+ in 408 plate appearances. This year, he has been even worse, hitting .204 with no home runs and a 60 wRC+ in 127 plate appearances.
This is the third neck injury for Winker in the last four years, and it remains to be seen when he will be able to return to the lineup. In the meantime, the Brewers will have to turn to other players to try to jumpstart their struggling offense.
One player who has been performing well over the past few games is Taylor Winker, who has a four-game hitting streak and a .263 batting average in his last games. Prop bets are available for his upcoming game against the Seattle Mariners, with odds for over/under 0.5 hits, over/under 0.5 home runs, over/under 0.5 RBI, and over/under 0.5 runs.
The Brewers will take on the Mariners at 9:40 PM ET on Tuesday, April 18, with Logan Gilbert as the starting pitcher. Milwaukee will need a strong offensive performance to overcome their early struggles and get back on track this season.
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