Typically, if one thinks of a 25-25 season, it would involve home runs and stolen bases. That is not the case with Detroit Tigers infielder Javier Baez.
He will not come close to either the 25 home run or 25 stolen base mark. Instead, on Friday, he joined the 25-25 club by drawing his 25th walk in the third inning, and then making his 25th error of the season in the sixth.
Detroit Tigers were hoping for much more from Javier Baez
It is safe to say that Baez has been one of the more disappointing players on a Tigers’ team filled with them. He had signed a six year deal worth $140 million, theoretically adding a brilliant defensive infielder with solid pop in his bat. There were going to be issues, such as his being allergic to taking a walk and elevated strikeout rates, but he was still expected to be worth the contract.
That has not been the case thus far. Baez had produced a disappointing .233/.274/.376 in his 521 plate appearances heading into Friday, hitting 13 homers and 25 doubles while stealing eight bases. Even his usually stellar defense has suffered as Baez has cost the Tigers two runs at short this year.
His struggles with the bat could just be a matter of making adjustments this offseason. He has a career high 53.1% ground ball rate while his .291 batting average on balls in play is the second lowest over a full season in his career. At the same time, his 87.9 MPH average exit velocity is the worst mark in his nine years in the majors. If he can get back to lifting the ball more, he could get closer to being the player that the Tigers need.
Maybe that is part of the problem. He has struggled to live up to expectations and may be putting too much pressure on himself to do so. If Baez can just be himself and block out that pressure, he could be that key piece in the rebuilding process that they had thought they brought in.
Javier Baez joined the 25-25 club in his first season with the Detroit Tigers. Unfortunately for them, it involved walks and errors instead of homers and steals.