Former MLB All-Star isn’t living up to his contract — and he knows it

Javier Báez doubtless is aware of the reality: He hasn’t lived as much as the contract the Detroit Tigers gave him. That consciousness — paired together with his physique breaking down — might outline how this deal in the end ends.

When the Tigers signed Báez to a six-year, $140 million contract in 2021, they have been betting on his electrical play and swagger carrying a younger workforce towards rivalry. As an alternative, three years in, the deal feels extra like a weight than a spark.

Báez’s numbers inform the story. His batting common has slipped every year, bottoming out at .184 in 2024 earlier than a hip injury ended his season. His .516 OPS final 12 months was the worst of his profession. Accidents, inconsistent self-discipline on the plate and declining defensive metrics have raised severe questions on his long-term worth.

To Báez’s credit score, he hasn’t ducked the grind. He returned this spring after hip surgical procedure with a targeted angle, even agreeing to take reps at third base to assist the workforce adapt. That form of shift — from franchise shortstop to potential utility nook infielder — feels much less like a tactic and extra like a concession: the participant, as soon as elite, is trying to find methods to contribute in a brand new profession section.

It is arduous to disregard that Báez appears to grasp the optics. By all accounts, he is engaged, working arduous and never pointing fingers. However there is not any hiding once you’re making practically $24 million a 12 months and enjoying like a below-replacement-level participant. He is on the improper facet of 30, and the Tigers have three years and $73 million left to pay. Báez is perhaps keen to do what’s requested — however effort does not equal manufacturing.

That is Detroit’s long-term dilemma. They’re caught paying for previous potential whereas hoping for future flashes. And so they’re doing it with a participant who doubtless is aware of he is not the man they thought they have been getting.

So what occurs subsequent?

The Tigers may journey it out and hope for a late-career bounce, although that is unlikely with out vital adjustments to Báez’s method. They may attempt to dump the contract, however who’s biting on an enormous deal tied to a declining veteran? A launch, or monetary settlement, can be an admission of failure — but it surely may additionally be the one path ahead if his manufacturing does not get better.

In the end, Báez would possibly end this contract extra as a mentor than a star. And if he does, it will be as a result of he understands the scenario. The efficiency hasn’t matched the paycheck, and now it is about salvaging some worth — for himself and the franchise.

Nobody has to say it out loud. You may see it on his face. Javier Báez is aware of.