Javy Báez's complicated injury rehab puts Tigers in uncomfortable position

As the Detroit Tigers look to build off the success of their magical 2024 playoff run and take the next step toward being legitimate contenders in 2025, they have to do so with a 6-foot, 190-pound, $140 million elephant in the room.

The Tigers signed shortstop Javy Báez to a six-year nightmare of a contract in 2021, one that has since aged like milk. During his past three seasons with Detroit, Báez has slashed just .221/.262/.347 and spent multiple stints on the injured list. He is set to earn $25 million in 2025 and $24 million over each of the following two seasons until he hits free agency in 2028.

Given that Báez has gotten progressively worse in each of his seasons with the Tigers and is coming off a particularly awful 2024 campaign that saw him hit a career-worst .184/.221/.294 before undergoing season-ending hip surgery in early September, it’s frankly very difficult to imagine that he becomes an impactful contributor to this team over the remainder of his contract.

Javy Báez's complicated injury rehab puts Tigers in uncomfortable position

The Tigers are in a fortunate position this offseason, as their promising young core from 2024 remains entirely intact. They do need to add some power to their lineup, however, which won't be cheap. And therein lies the problem.

Báez's contract is virtually untradable, meaning that the Tigers will be stuck paying more than $20 million a season through 2027 for a player who, in a best-case scenario, will be half of a platoon at shortstop with Trey Sweeney. They could designate Báez for assignment, but that would be an uncharacteristically ruthless move for the Tigers to pull while he recovers from hip surgery. Plus, it feels even more unlikely after manager AJ Hinch's comments at last week's Winter Meetings.

"He hasn't had a misstep or he hasn't had anything that gives us doubt or pause that he's not going to be fully healthy when the time comes," Hinch said (via Evan Petzold of the Detroit Free Press). "I don't know when that is, and I don't know what he's going to be able to give us as we get into the spring. But I'm very proud of his communication, his diligence. The program he's on is giving him the best chance to get back to being healthy."

The Tigers are optimistic that Báez will participate in spring training, but it's unclear if he will be ready for Opening Day. Even if he is, there's very little reason to be optimistic that he gives them a better chance to win than Sweeney.

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