Javier Baez is enduring a nightmare season with the Detroit Tigers.
Perhaps a return to the friendly confines of Wrigley Field will light a spark under Baez, who spent parts of his first eight major league seasons with the Chicago Cubs.
Baez will look for better results against one of his former teams on Tuesday when the Tigers open a three-game road series against the Cubs.
Selected by Chicago with the ninth overall pick of the 2011 MLB Draft, Baez was a two-time All-Star with the Cubs and played an integral role in leading the club to its 2016 World Series title. He was traded to the New York Mets in July 2021 and granted free agency about three months later before signing with Detroit in December of that year.
Unfortunately for Baez, he has struggled mightily in Motown. He followed up a .238 batting average in 2022 with a .222 effort the following year. This year, he is hitting a paltry .185 with six homers and 37 RBIs in 78 games.
“He was uber-talented,” Chicago manager Craig Counsell said of Baez, per the Chicago Sun-Times. “Yeah, I’m surprised (that he is struggling).”
With Baez on the bench, the Tigers recorded their sixth win in seven games with a 3-2 victory in 10 innings over the New York Yankees on Sunday night at the MLB Little League Classic in Williamsport, Pa.
Parker Meadows, 24, capped a three-hit performance with the game-winning RBI single in the 10th inning. Colt Keith, 23, also had three hits and Jace Jung, 23, provided the game-tying RBI single in the ninth inning for Detroit, whose lineup on Sunday included six players 24 years or younger.
“This is who we are, and it’s just a lot of guys that are here, getting opportunities. They’ve earned it,” Tigers manager A.J. Hinch said.
“They’re also guys that we’re going to rely on moving forward. And it doesn’t mean you have to be young to play on this team. But it does show that developments continue, and at this level, we believe in these guys. … This is a fun group to manage because they believe.”
The Cubs’ bid to sweep their three-game home series against the Toronto Blue Jays fell short following Sunday’s 1-0 setback.
“Three one-run games and we came out on top of two of them,” Counsell said, “but obviously we look at (Sunday) as a missed opportunity.”
Cody Bellinger had a one-out single in the ninth inning Sunday and later stole second base. He is 10-for-37 with two homers, five RBIs and five runs in his last 10 games for Chicago.
Although neither team officially announced their starting pitcher for the series opener, Cubs right-hander Javier Assad (5-3, 3.19 ERA) is expected to get the nod on Tuesday.
Assad, 27, recorded his third straight no-decision last Tuesday after allowing one run on five hits in 4 2/3 innings against the Cleveland Guardians.
The third-year veteran received a no-decision in his lone career encounter with Detroit last season on Aug. 21. He permitted two runs on five hits in 5 1/3 innings in Chicago’s 7-6 win.
