On-Air Now
On-Air Now
Listen Live from the Casino Matrix Studio

Why timing was perfect for Darin Ruf and Giants to give each other a chance

By

/


Jayne Kamin-Oncea-USA TODAY Sports


SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. — Darin Ruf doesn’t believe he’s much of a changed player three years later. He returns with a slightly better grasp of Korean — “hi, bye and thank you, things like that” — a mind he feels is wiser and a family that is growing.

His wife is due with their second child in early April, and after three seasons of Ruf excelling in the Korea Baseball Organization, they had to make a decision.

“We always talk about what makes sense for us,” Ruf told KNBR this week. “It would have been really hard [for my family] to come over there. Then they wouldn’t have been able to come over until July or so.”

Instead, the family made camp at their Arizona home, choosing stability and keeping the unit together, and Ruf, at 33, is giving MLB another try, while the Giants are giving him a try.

The tentative lineup for the Giants’ spring opener — which was being delayed due to rain Saturday — featured all familiar names and faces, eight players who appeared in 2019 games for the Giants. And then there’s Ruf, at DH, as the surprise No. 9 hitter.

As a non-roster spring invite, he’ll begin his quest to prove he not only has something left, but he has more than when he left for the Samsung Lions.

Ruf rode a roller-coaster with Philadelphia from 2012-16, the first baseman/corner outfielder displaying both his power — he slammed 14 home runs in 251 at-bats in 2013 — and a bat not good enough to permanently stick in the majors. In 286 games, he’s slashed .240/.314/.433, leading to an early 2017 trade to the Dodgers, who then sold him to the KBO, where he wanted to get consistent time and see something new.

A fringe major league player became a South Korean star.

“I was recognizable probably more so because I was a big taller white guy,” said Ruf, listed as 6-foot-3, 250 pounds. “They’re huge baseball fans. After having a little bit of success and going back for my second and third years, it was hard to go out without being recognized.”

He admitted he did not post the numbers that Eric Thames did, which made the KBO star a hot commodity when he returned to MLB in 2017. But Ruf knocked 86 homers in three seasons and continued to hone a righty bat that destroyed lefties. For much of the offseason, the Giants’ starting outfield looked like Alex Dickerson-Steven Duggar-Mike Yastrzemski — three lefties.

Ruf noticed (though Hunter Pence later was added to the mix).

“In my position, being a little bit older, it had to be a good fit for the organization and myself,” said Ruf, who said there was “some interest” from other teams. “… You look through teams to see where maybe you can be a good fit. With my doing really well against lefties, you find teams that are a little more left-handed dominant with their everyday guys.”

He gets it. If he can find a spot off the bench or earn spot-starts against southpaws, the fit is ideal. Even when he was struggling in Philadelphia, Ruf was teeing off against lefties, against whom he slashed .299/.379/.542 in 318 plate appearances.

Can he still hit major league pitching? His manager is uniquely qualified to vouch for comebacks from playing overseas.

“I think the biggest challenge is trusting yourself that … the good work that you did over there will translate here,” said Gabe Kapler of readjusting, having played 38 games in Japan in 2005 before returning to Boston. “Ruf was incredibly productive in Korea, exceptionally productive in Korea. Understanding that that very good offensive profile works well here as well is probably the confidence that [Ruf needs].”

If the Giants found their platoon option, Ruf has found another life a world away. The family is together, a girl on the way and their 4-year-old soon becoming a big brother. But Ruf said this doesn’t feel like his last chance.

“I feel like I could still play a couple more years if I keep playing well,” Ruf said. “I’ve been blessed to be healthy pretty much my whole career. … But at this age, you’re one bad season, one injury away from probably not playing again.”