Report: D-backs Have Checked In on Brandon Drury

The Diamondbacks continue to search for a right-handed hitting infielder.

The Diamondbacks continue to search for right-handed hitting infielders via free agency or trade. They were previously linked to Evan Longoria and Justin Turner, the latter recently signing a two-year deal with the Boston Red Sox. In his most recent column, The Athletic's Ken Rosenthal reports the D-backs have checked in with Brandon Drury.

Drury spent parts of three seasons with Arizona from 2015-2017, hitting .271/.319/.448 with 31 home runs in 289 games. That production was slightly below league average 95 OPS+. He was originally acquired in the Justin Upton deal in January 2013 along with Martin Prado, Randall Delgado, Nick Ahmed, and Zeke Spruill. Just before the 2018 season, Drury was dealt to the New York Yankees in a three-team trade that included Steven Souza and Taylor Widener going to Arizona. 

After the trade he struggled to stick in the big leagues, bouncing around from the Yankees, Blue Jays, and Mets before rediscovering his bat in Cincinnati. With the Reds, Drury hit .274/.335/.520 with 20 home runs and was 28% better than the league average hitter with a 128 OPS+. With the rebuilding Reds on the way to the fourth worst record in baseball in 2022, they elected to trade him to the San Diego Padres at the deadline for minor league pitcher Victor Acosta. Drury wasn't as effective a hitter in San Diego, as his OPS+ dropped to 109, on a .238/.290/.435 batting line. He split time at both corner infield spots and at designated hitter.  

Projections systems seem to have not bought into his stint with the Reds, as both ZiPS and Steamer projections have him well below that level and much closer to his career numbers going forward in 2023.

Brandon Drury 2023 Projections

But sometimes projection systems are behind the curve in picking up when a player has improved. In 2022, Drury made a lot of loud contact as his 42.2% hard hit rate ranked in the 65th percentile and 10.4% barrel rate in the 85th percentile according to Baseball Savant. He's never been a particularly disciplined hitter however, with an elevated strikeout rate and a low walk rate throughout his career. It's also worth noting that he crushed left-handed pitching, hitting .299/.329/.626 with 12 of his 28 home runs. Much of that production came at the D-backs expense, as he hit .333 with six homers in 10 games against Arizona last year.

Another important question the Diamondbacks must answer in their evaluations is which defensive measuring system is best capturing Drury's performance with the glove. Since coming up as a third baseman, Drury has had mixed reviews of his infield defense from year to year, and more pointedly, from rating system to rating system. Statcast rates him as around league average at thirdbase, while defensive runs saved from Sports Info Solutions rates him well below average. At the same time Drury has rated above average at second base in his career, although the bulk of that came in 2017. 

Brandon Drury Career Defensive Stats

Second base is currently occupied by Ketel Marte, and barring injury Drury wouldn't get much playing time at second. If signed for a second stint in Arizona, he may split time between third base, second base and designated hitter. In 2022, Drury played five different positions and graded out at one out above average on Statcast. While he's unlikely to be a great defender, if taking the Statcast view he's probably not going to be a liability at the places Arizona puts him on the field.

Depending on how the D-backs can incorporate his bat in the lineup, Drury is a guy who could potentially see 500 PA between platooning third base, DH, and filling in for injuries on the infield. While he doesn't have the same track record as Justin Turner, at 30 years old he could potentially command a three year deal with an average annual of $8 to $10 million per season for his services.