Milwaukee Brewers shortstop Joey Ortiz has gone from a source of frustration to one of the hottest hitters in the majors, and the turnaround has been stark.
That was hard to see coming after his rough start. In March and April, Ortiz hit .197/.284/.197 with no home runs and six RBI.
May was even tougher, as he posted a .177/.290/.275 line with one home run and five RBI. By June, the Brewers had turned to Cooper Pratt to handle the starting shortstop job, and Ortiz was pushed into a backup role while also getting some time at third base.
Since then, the bat has come alive.
Ortiz hit .250/.283/.357 with a home run and eight RBI in June, a step forward even if it did not exactly jump off the page. July was where things really started to take off. He batted .309/.356/.574 with three home runs and nine RBI, and he has kept it going into August, hitting .308/.367/.462 with a home run and five RBI so far.
The power numbers may not scream superstardom, but the overall production has been elite. Since July 4, no hitter in Major League Baseball with at least 90 at-bats has posted a higher OPS than Ortiz, whose mark sits at 1.005.
The National League leaders in OPS since July 4, minimum 90 at-bats, are:
1 - JOEY ORTIZ (1.005)
2 - Griffin Conine (.970)
3 - Ty France (.963)
4 - James Wood (.963)
5 - CJ Abrams (.956)
That kind of surge has flipped the conversation around him completely. The same fans who once wanted Ortiz benched, traded, sent down, or released have now become irritated when he is left out of the lineup.
Ortiz also missed time this month because of a sore neck, but he has returned and is back at shortstop while Pratt is on the injured list with a hamstring injury.
For the season, Ortiz is hitting .243/.311/.367 with six home runs and 33 RBI. If he simply holds that line the rest of the way, his .243 average would stand as a career high.
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Brewers Are Watching One Draft Bet Look Smarter Than Ever
The Brewers have found themselves with a pair of intriguing infield bets in the Ebel brothers, and the early returns have only made the organization look sharper for taking the long view. Milwaukee drafted Brady Ebel out of high school in 2025 and followed by selecting his younger brother Trey in 2026, then watched both move quickly enough to climb in the clubs prospect rankings.
Bradys recent promotion to High-A with the Wisconsin Timber Rattlers is the kind of step that starts to turn a prospect from interesting into legitimate. He has also cracked MLB Pipelines Top 100, while Trey is beginning his pro path at Low-A with the Wilson Warbirds, giving the Brewers two young shortstops in the system who are drawing attention for more than just the family connection. [Read more 🡒]