SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. -- Darin Ruf never got the opportunity to establish himself as a big league regular over his five seasons with the Phillies. He had to head overseas to land an everyday role, spending three years in the Korean Baseball Organization before deciding he wanted another shot at the Majors.

When Ruf decided to return stateside two years ago, he found the market for his services to be “pretty small.” He garnered interest from only two teams -- the Giants and the Mets -- and ended up accepting a Minor League deal with San Francisco, partly because of the preponderance of left-handed pitchers in the National League West.

Ruf quickly carved out a role as a lefty killer for the Giants, winning a spot on the 2020 Opening Day roster and emerging as one of their most quietly productive bats over the last two seasons. At 35, Ruf is now poised to take on an expanded role with the Giants this year, particularly after securing a two-year, $6.25 million deal with a third-year club option Tuesday.

“It’s really special for me and my family and everyone that has taken time out of their day to help me get to this point,” Ruf said Wednesday. “I’m very blessed and grateful. I’m happy that we were really on the same page yesterday. It felt good.”

The Giants locked up Ruf at a relatively modest sum, but the deal essentially doubled his career earnings in the Majors, giving the late-blooming slugger a level of job security that had previously proved elusive. President of baseball operations Farhan Zaidi said the agreement came together relatively quickly, as Ruf’s deal is nearly identical to the one fellow lefty crusher Wilmer Flores signed two years ago.

“We always think about the contracts that are like $100 million, $150 million, $200 million contracts being the ones that are the separators,” manager Gabe Kapler said. “But they’re really not the separators. The ones that are the separators are the foundational earning moments. That’s what this is for Darin Ruf. It’s well earned, well deserved. He worked hard to get to this level of security. There’s really nobody we’re all happier for than Darin right now.”

After losing two key right-handed bats in Buster Posey and Kris Bryant this offseason, the Giants are expected to lean more heavily on Ruf, who could see time against lefties and righties after hitting .271 with a .904 OPS and 16 home runs over 117 games last year. Kapler noted that Ruf already looks “locked in,” particularly after going 4-for-5 with three home runs during a live batting practice session against right-hander Anthony DeSclafani and left-hander Jake McGee on Sunday.

Ruf said he would welcome more opportunities to show that he can be more than just a platoon bat.

“That’s all you can hope for as a player -- to be in a position to help your team every single night,” Ruf said. “If that is what the vision was this year, that would be awesome.”

Ruf took a circuitous journey to get to this point, but he’s had a longtime admirer in Zaidi, who first acquired Ruf from the Phillies in Nov. 2016, when he was the Dodgers’ general manager.

“It’s easy for a very casual observer to feel like he came out of nowhere, but he had a great Minor League track record, even when he first got to the Phillies,” Zaidi said last fall. “I think he had a Double-A season in 2012 that was one of the best Double-A seasons ever. He kind of got to the big leagues, and being in the National League -- probably some because of being blocked and some because of having maybe better defenders ahead of him -- didn’t get a great opportunity.

“But even in certain spurts, he was a really, really productive big league player. We did trade for him and figured he would be a potential role player, a right-handed platoon bat, bat off the bench -- in many ways, a role similar to how he started here. I think it’s just a credit to him. He got an opportunity in Asia, went over there and kind of became a more complete player.”

Ruf primarily split his time between left field and first base last year, but he could also draw some at-bats at designated hitter in 2022. He figures to be a fixture in the heart of the Giants’ lineup as well, further underscoring just how far he’s come over the last two years.

“I’m very grateful for everything,” Ruf said. “Being with Philly, going over to Korea and then really getting to grow as a player and as a person, and then getting the opportunity here has been amazing. Obviously, coming back, I didn’t know what I would experience, but I couldn’t have imagined being in a better situation as far as everything, from the organization to the coaching staff to the guys in the clubhouse. It’s been so comfortable and really awesome.”