Can a Bench Player Breakout for the Brewers in 2023?

Can Abraham Toro breakout for the Brewers? 

Following the Kolten Wong trade, the Brewers’ sit in a similar, yet different position. Jesse Winker and Abraham Toro are both coming off of down years, but look to bounce back with a change of scenery.

Abraham Toro was drafted in 2016 by the Astros and spent time at the major league level. Between 2019 and 2020, Toro appeared in 58 games but only managed to bat .183 in that time with 18 RBIs. Toro found himself in a larger bench role in 2021 filling in for injured players. In 35 games in 2021, Toro had already hit more home runs (6) than he had hit during his previous call-up (5).

After being traded at the deadline to the Seattle Mariners, Toro managed to find a consistent spot in the lineup. In 169 games in Seattle, Toro had a line of .218/.283/.345 with 15 homers and 61 RBIs. The knock on Toro that has affected his playing time is his exit velocity. Toro ranks in the 14th percentile for average exit velocity and in the 42nd percentile for max exit velocity, according to Baseball Savant. The Mariners played magnificent small-ball at times, which helped provide opportunities at the plate for Toro.

Following the acquisition of infielder Owen Miller from the Guardians, the Brewers now have a crowd. Willy Adames, Mike Brosseau, Keston Hiura, Rowdy Tellez, Luis Urias, Abraham Toro, and Brice Turang all join Miller to create the infield for 2023. Barring any other moves, Urias, Adames, Hiura and Tellez could be the starting infielder on Opening Day. Toro has a great opportunity to become a reliable bench bat when the Brewers need to get the ball through the infield.

Will the potential be on display for the Brewers?

It is easy to say that Toro is a misunderstood player in a hard-hitting based MLB. While he hasn’t hit the ball as hard, or as often as he would like he has an amazing ability at the plate. In 2022, Toro ranked in the 68th percentile in strikeout and whiff rate. Toro doesn’t crush the ball, but rather places the ball into spots where the defense can’t get to.

Abraham Toro puts the Mariners ahead in the 9th! pic.twitter.com/Sterskjs3D

— Talkin’ Baseball (@TalkinBaseball_) July 31, 2022

Above is a perfect example, courtesy of Talkin Baseball, that displays Toro hitting a game-tying single through the shift. A few weeks before, Toro walked it off for the Mariners with a double over the head of the right fielder. The Brewers scored 725 runs in 2022 to the 615 earned runs allowed. Many of the games came down to the Brewers struggling to make the most of the opportunities in front of them at the plate. Off the bench, Abraham Toro could provide a boost the Brewers need. He drives the ball into play and seems to find the gaps each time.

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