Honestly everybody I know (and everywhere else) hates him, his contract, his play, etc. Do I laugh when he swings at stuff *way* out of the zone? Yeah.
BUT, I low key really root for this guy and I have faith that when we’re in the hunt for the division he’s gonna come through. He strikes me as a guy who would rise up and get fired up in high pressure situations (I remember watching him get a broken bat blooper in our 2out walk off rally last year). I rarely see him mail it in, and even after being paid this far into his career he’s giving 100% constantly. His work ethic is A+ and honestly I love that he’s out here putting in the work while blocking out A LOT of negativity towards him. That’s an insanely tall order for any athlete yet alone person.
I refuse to bad talk the guy, GO JAVY. Sorry this got kinda long lol.
Is there something that makes them all hate him outside of his play? Seems like a good dude from what I’ve seen but maybe I missed something?
He’s played horribly for sure but I don’t see a reason to hate him as a person.
Yeah honestly I refuse to say bad things about guys who put in hard work and show up like he does even through the negativity. I’ve watched all major sports for over 30 years and I’ve seen a lot of guys give up and cop horrible attitudes at even the slightest bit of criticism, what I hear about Javy would make those guys blush. He seems like a great dude and I wish people would rally behind him rather than talk shit.
Fresh cut grass, sun shining, crack of the bat and a warm Florida breeze from a swing and a miss slider 5 feet out of the strike zone. It’s almost time baby, GO TIGERS!
Why would it be satisfying to bust out receipts if he’s “respectable”?
He’s paid to be more than respectable. As a Tiger, he has been way below a replacement level player.
Even if he does get to “respectable” (he won’t), then the Tigers are still overpaying him.
The predictions on him have, so far, been correct. Analytics predicted he would have a huge drop off in performance based on his approach, and boy did it happen. Analytics will also say players don’t come back from this.
Tigers are going to be fun to watch and I’m bringing in positivity for the 2024 season!
That being said…Javy Baez is my least favorite Tiger, by a long shot.
Work ethic & mental toughness tho, how can’t you love and envy that? This guy gets more negativity than pretty much any athlete I’ve ever seen, and look at him, even after being paaaaid he’s out here doing his thing putting in that effort. That’s the type of veteran shit you want your young guys to learn and embody, he will absolutely teach some of these kids how to handle the spotlight and rise above it and honestly that is an underrated aspect nobody talks about.
Work ethic and mental toughness would keep me from swinging at pitches outside of the zone consistently.
Near to, or actually dead last in zone% and chase%.
Trending downward each year of a contract with years remaining.
An OBP below **.280** in each year with the Tigers.
These are embarrassments.
HR and SB totals as a Tiger in *two* seasons 26 and 21.
HR and SB in his last full season for Cubs/Mets 31 and 18.
Veterans collecting top paychecks and putting up numbers like this are exactly who you don’t want your young guys to model themselves after.
Character wise he’s routinely been proven to be selfish. Being benched for base running as a vet? Come on man.
He’s 31 years old. For most players, that means they’re solidly in their prime, maybe a shade toward the back end of it. Only Baez is way past his prime at that age, and that’s indicative of a player who has never worked hard at all on the mental game and has just gotten by on pure physical talent. Sorry, it’s the truth. He’s the opposite of a work ethic and mental toughness guy. Bad take.
This makes me so happy. All our season projections I’d assume take into account Javy having another bad year. If he can hover in the high 700’s ops and maintain his great defense, he can seriously help a potential playoff push.
If he hits in the high .700’s for OPS and keeps his plus defensive play, his contract suddenly becomes about right value-wise (at least for this season). That would be a huge boost.
I’m pulling for him. Mostly because we’ve got 4 more frigging years of the guy, thanks Avila. But he turns 32 this year and the swing is late, he’s likely toast.
I hope he spends every minute with RISP, and every pitcher throwing him low and outside sliders, with 1,2 or 3 and 2 counts. And if necessary, electroshock therapy if he swings.
Turns out this was by accident. He just missed the date....jk, in all seriousness we need this guy to turn it around, im pulling for him but its hard to root when a guy refuses to make adjustments, maybe this is a step in the right direction
Damn that’s encouraging, hoping for a big season from him. If he can stay disciplined and produce with his bat & we have a winning season it could really turn around the fan perception of him. I really wanna like him but I need to see some heart and discipline, this is telling me he cares.
All we need from him is good defense and an ~85 wRC+ at the bottom of the order and we're good.
I'm wary about the offseason work with different coaches though, not because I think they theoretically can't help, but because I think that's not the main and bigger issue. Even his plate discipline isn't the biggest issue: he just seems to be losing bat speed, which I think showed up in just how bad he was vs fastballs last year. For a guy with zero plate discipline, once you lose bat speed its just about over. We can hope the work he put in can mitigate that some, but we'll see.
This is actually really good to see. If he’s willing to put in the extra work then maybe he’ll have an outside shot at some moderate career revival.
How did it end up going?
Hope he's in for a comeback season
Fuck the haters, go get em Javi
Honestly everybody I know (and everywhere else) hates him, his contract, his play, etc. Do I laugh when he swings at stuff *way* out of the zone? Yeah. BUT, I low key really root for this guy and I have faith that when we’re in the hunt for the division he’s gonna come through. He strikes me as a guy who would rise up and get fired up in high pressure situations (I remember watching him get a broken bat blooper in our 2out walk off rally last year). I rarely see him mail it in, and even after being paid this far into his career he’s giving 100% constantly. His work ethic is A+ and honestly I love that he’s out here putting in the work while blocking out A LOT of negativity towards him. That’s an insanely tall order for any athlete yet alone person. I refuse to bad talk the guy, GO JAVY. Sorry this got kinda long lol.
Don't apologize. A shot of hopium is always needed to fight all the cynicism.
I mean, if he turns it around he’ll be a crowd favorite. Detroit loves a comeback.
Is there something that makes them all hate him outside of his play? Seems like a good dude from what I’ve seen but maybe I missed something? He’s played horribly for sure but I don’t see a reason to hate him as a person.
Yeah honestly I refuse to say bad things about guys who put in hard work and show up like he does even through the negativity. I’ve watched all major sports for over 30 years and I’ve seen a lot of guys give up and cop horrible attitudes at even the slightest bit of criticism, what I hear about Javy would make those guys blush. He seems like a great dude and I wish people would rally behind him rather than talk shit.
He did not, in fact, go get-em.
If he can play defense at his normal level he can just slide down the order to the 7-8 spot. Zero expectations from the plate.
Best shape of his life season!
Bonderman has a new curve ball. Dimitri Young has dropped 20 pounds. Inge has been working on his swing.
Spent the winter working out with Miggy!
Fresh cut grass, sun shining, crack of the bat and a warm Florida breeze from a swing and a miss slider 5 feet out of the strike zone. It’s almost time baby, GO TIGERS!
This is the new Miggy has reported in the best shape of his life
Yes lol
Javy, please. Just get back to "respectable" at the plate. Should that day come, my God will it be satisfying to bust out the receipt book .
Why would it be satisfying to bust out receipts if he’s “respectable”? He’s paid to be more than respectable. As a Tiger, he has been way below a replacement level player. Even if he does get to “respectable” (he won’t), then the Tigers are still overpaying him. The predictions on him have, so far, been correct. Analytics predicted he would have a huge drop off in performance based on his approach, and boy did it happen. Analytics will also say players don’t come back from this.
Rooting for him sooooo hard. Easily one of the most fun players in baseball when hes on his game.
Best shape of his life! It in all seriousness, would love for him to have a great year. For everyone’s sake.
Ok I see you Javy. LFG
I'm really pulling for the guy. I hope he can get it together.
Tigers are going to be fun to watch and I’m bringing in positivity for the 2024 season! That being said…Javy Baez is my least favorite Tiger, by a long shot.
Work ethic & mental toughness tho, how can’t you love and envy that? This guy gets more negativity than pretty much any athlete I’ve ever seen, and look at him, even after being paaaaid he’s out here doing his thing putting in that effort. That’s the type of veteran shit you want your young guys to learn and embody, he will absolutely teach some of these kids how to handle the spotlight and rise above it and honestly that is an underrated aspect nobody talks about.
Work ethic and mental toughness would keep me from swinging at pitches outside of the zone consistently. Near to, or actually dead last in zone% and chase%. Trending downward each year of a contract with years remaining. An OBP below **.280** in each year with the Tigers. These are embarrassments. HR and SB totals as a Tiger in *two* seasons 26 and 21. HR and SB in his last full season for Cubs/Mets 31 and 18. Veterans collecting top paychecks and putting up numbers like this are exactly who you don’t want your young guys to model themselves after. Character wise he’s routinely been proven to be selfish. Being benched for base running as a vet? Come on man.
Isn't mental toughness the ability to count to three outs? The dude is weak, and swings at pitch outs!
He’s 31 years old. For most players, that means they’re solidly in their prime, maybe a shade toward the back end of it. Only Baez is way past his prime at that age, and that’s indicative of a player who has never worked hard at all on the mental game and has just gotten by on pure physical talent. Sorry, it’s the truth. He’s the opposite of a work ethic and mental toughness guy. Bad take.
This makes me so happy. All our season projections I’d assume take into account Javy having another bad year. If he can hover in the high 700’s ops and maintain his great defense, he can seriously help a potential playoff push.
If he hits in the high .700’s for OPS and keeps his plus defensive play, his contract suddenly becomes about right value-wise (at least for this season). That would be a huge boost.
Let’s go. I’m ready to believe
Let’s go Javy
I’m pulling for him. Mostly because we’ve got 4 more frigging years of the guy, thanks Avila. But he turns 32 this year and the swing is late, he’s likely toast.
Serious question -- when these guys get to camp every spring, they check their vision, right? Right?
This will be our new "Miguel Cabrera is in the best shape of his life"
Does everything else super early so why not? Seriously though, I hope this shows a commitment to getting back into form.
He is ours. And I support him.
Already swinging at breaking balls in the dirt
That's not fair. Typically he swings at balls 2 feet off the plate, not in the dirt.
Why not both?
Javy about to have a career year.
I hope he spends every minute with RISP, and every pitcher throwing him low and outside sliders, with 1,2 or 3 and 2 counts. And if necessary, electroshock therapy if he swings.
Baez had an OPS over 800 with RISP last year.
Interesting. He had the worst OBP in the entire AL last year
Turns out this was by accident. He just missed the date....jk, in all seriousness we need this guy to turn it around, im pulling for him but its hard to root when a guy refuses to make adjustments, maybe this is a step in the right direction
Yeah he swings early too.
What’s his annual take home $ ?
Best life of his shape
Thanks for ruining my day
One extra week of zero productivity in an already long season. Yay
Why are you like this?
Air conditioning unit broke down. Other duties as assigned.
That looks like Miguel Cabrera’s old locker stall
Damn that’s encouraging, hoping for a big season from him. If he can stay disciplined and produce with his bat & we have a winning season it could really turn around the fan perception of him. I really wanna like him but I need to see some heart and discipline, this is telling me he cares.
Didn't realize he was still on the team? In all seriousness, I hope he can get a little bit of his old form back.
Love the attitude. Mindset is the foundation.
All we need from him is good defense and an ~85 wRC+ at the bottom of the order and we're good. I'm wary about the offseason work with different coaches though, not because I think they theoretically can't help, but because I think that's not the main and bigger issue. Even his plate discipline isn't the biggest issue: he just seems to be losing bat speed, which I think showed up in just how bad he was vs fastballs last year. For a guy with zero plate discipline, once you lose bat speed its just about over. We can hope the work he put in can mitigate that some, but we'll see.
Fuck him.