Caleb Durbin is making his big league debut tonight, as he’s hitting ninth against A’s right-hander J.T. Ginn. The Brewers promoted Durbin from Triple-A Nashville this morning, optioning out Oliver Dunn in the process. Manager Pat Murphy confirmed before the game that the Brewers will use Durbin as their primary third baseman (relayed by Todd Rosiak of The Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel).
Durbin joined the Brewers alongside Nestor Cortes in the Devin Williams trade. The righty-hitting infielder was coming off a .275/.388/.451 batting line over 90 minor league games during his final season in the Yankees system. New York added him to the 40-man roster rather than risk losing him in the Rule 5 draft. They traded him a couple weeks later.
The 25-year-old hit .259 with a pair of homers and 10 steals over 16 games during Spring Training. Milwaukee optioned him, tabbing Dunn and Vinny Capra to split time at the hot corner. They haven’t produced. Brewers third basemen have hit an MLB-worst .150/.188/.233 with one longball in 67 plate appearances. Dunn had a .205 on-base percentage without a home run in 41 trips to the plate. Capra, who is out of minor league options, has three hits without a walk and 10 strikeouts in 13 games.
Durbin has been out to a much better start in Nashville. He hit .278/.316/.481 with a couple homers over 13 games. He’s not going to provide much power, but he has excellent bat-to-ball skills and plus speed. Durbin stole 31 bases in 35 attempts last year. He joins Joey Ortiz, Brice Turang and Rhys Hoskins on Murphy’s infield. Jake Bauers can spell Hoskins at first base, while Capra is on hand as a utility option.