Chipper Jones: "I'm on a year-to-year basis" - MLB

Chipper Jones sat for a wide-ranging interview with Dave O’Brien of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. Among the nuggets:

He’s spent a lot of his offseason hunting. Shocking.

Despite what a lot of Braves fans thought last year, he wasn’t hiding an injury or anything. His season-long slump was merely a function of things not coming together. While some Braves fans may be worried about that — could it mean that Chipper is just on the decline?! — I’m not. The dude simply hasn’t had any practice hitting when all of his body parts are functioning properly, so it was a new and foreign experience for the guy. Want a good Chipper Jones season in 2010? Hope he pulls a hamstring in March that never really heals all season. He’s used to that. He’ll probably hit .309 with 27 homers that way.

Despite just starting his three-year, $42 million extension, Jones is “on a year-to-year basis right now.” If he doesn’t produce this year, he’ll quit. Based on everything I know about the guy, I believe him. Unlike many superstars, he has a pretty full life outside of baseball. Businesses, ranches and stuff like that. He says here that he’s sick of living out of suitcases and that “there’s certain
politics that go with playing this game that I don’t want to have to deal
with.” I wouldn’t be at all surprised if Jones walks after 2010.

As for his post-playing career, he says “I don’t think you could pay me enough money to
manage, to be honest with you [Jones laughs], after seeing what managing has
done to Bobby [Cox].” Interesting observation, but I think that may be more a function of being Bobby Cox than managing. I got to meet Cox at the Winter Meetings. He’s roughly my dad’s age — late 60s — but he seems like he’s in his 80s in many respects. Tony La Russa is only a couple of years younger than Cox and has been managing just as long, and he seems like he’s 40 (dresses like he’s 20). I imagine that, like almost every job, in managing, the stress you take is equal to the stress you make.

Despite some lip service about moving “for the right personnel,” there’s no way he’s leaving third base. I think the Braves really screwed this one up major for Jones several years ago when they put him in left field for Vinny freakin’ Castilla of all people. You don’t move a Hall of Famer for a schlub like that. By doing so, the team soured Jones on the very idea of moving to first base at some point, to where now he wouldn’t do it unless a wormhole sent a 27 year-old Mike Schmidt forward in time to Atlanta in 2010.

I’m cautiously optimistic for something of a comeback season for Jones. Not a comeback to MVP-candidate Chipper Jones, but maybe a late-era Al Kaline kind of thing where he misses a good chunk of time due to age and breakdown but still manages to hit .300 and be productive. Will that be good enough for him to stay in the game beyond 2010? Tough call. Right now I’d say it’s 50-50.

ARLINGTON, Texas — The Texas Rangers signed Jacob deGrom to a $185 million, five-year deal in free agency last winter hoping the two-time NL Cy Young Award winner could help them get back to the playoffs for the first time since 2016 and make a push toward winning a World Series.

They also knew the risks, with the pitcher coming off two injury-plagued seasons with the New York Mets.

Even with deGrom sidelined since late April, the AL West-leading Rangers are off to the best start in franchise history – but now will be without their prized acquisition until at least next year. The team said Tuesday that deGrom will have season-ending surgery next week to repair a torn ulnar collateral ligament in his right elbow.

“We’ve got a special group here and to not be able to be out there and help them win, that stinks,” deGrom said, pausing several times with tears in his eyes. “Wanting to be out there and helping the team, it’s a disappointment.”

General manager Chris Young said Tuesday the decision on surgery came after an MRI on deGrom’s ailing right elbow, but the extent of what is required might not be determined until the operation is performed next week.

Tommy John surgery, in which the damaged ligament is replaced, is often needed to fix a torn UCL, but Young and the Rangers didn’t go as far as saying the pitcher would have that particular procedure. After being drafted by the New York Mets in 2010, deGrom made six starts in the minors that summer before needing Tommy John surgery and missing all of 2011, three years before his big league debut.

DeGrom last pitched April 28 against the New York Yankees, when he exited early because of injury concerns for the second time in a span of three starts. The announcement about surgery came a day after deGrom was transferred to the 60-day injured list.

Young said the latest MRI showed more inflammation and significant structural damage in the ligament that wasn’t there on the scan after deGrom left the game against the Yankees.

“The results of that MRI show that we have not made progress. And in fact, we’ve identified some damage to the ligament,” Young said. “It’s obviously a tough blow for Jacob, for certainly the Rangers. But we do feel this is what is right for Jacob in his career. We’re confident he’ll make a full recovery.”

Young and deGrom, who turns 35 later this month, said the goal is for the pitcher to return near the end of next season. Both said they were glad to have clarity on what was wrong with the elbow.

Texas won all six games started by deGrom (2-0), but the right-hander threw only 30 1/3 innings. He has a 2.67 ERA with 45 strikeouts and four walks. He threw 3 2/3 scoreless innings against the Yankees in his last start before leaving because of discomfort in his arm.

The Rangers went into Tuesday night’s game against St. Louis with a 39-20 record, the first time they were 19 games over .500 since the end of 2016, their last winning season.

Before going home to Florida over the weekend for the birth of his third child, deGrom threw his fifth bullpen last Wednesday in Detroit.

“I’d have days where I’d feel really good, days where I didn’t feel great. So I was kind of riding a roller coaster there for a little bit,” deGrom said. “They said originally there, we just saw some inflammation. … Getting an MRI right after you pitch, I feel like anybody would have inflammation. So, you know, I was hoping that that would get out of there and I would be fine. But it just didn’t work out that way.”

DeGrom spent his first nine big league seasons with the Mets, but was limited by injuries to 156 1/3 innings over 26 starts during his last two years in New York.

He had a career-low 1.08 ERA over 92 innings in 2021 before missing the final three months of the season with right forearm tightness and a sprained elbow.

The four-time All-Star didn’t make his first big league start last year until Aug. 2 after being shut down late in spring training because of a stress reaction in his right scapula.

His latest injury almost surely will trigger Texas’ conditional option on deGrom’s contract for 2028.

The option takes effect if deGrom has Tommy John surgery on his right elbow from 2023-26 or has any right elbow or shoulder injury that causes him to be on the IL for any period of 130 consecutive days during any season or 186 days in a row during any service period.

The conditional option would be for $20 million, $30 million or $37 million, depending on deGrom’s performance during the contract and health following the 2027 season.

“I feel bad for Jake. If I know Jake, he’ll have the surgery and come back and finish his career strong,” second-year Mets manager Buck Showalter said. “I know how much it means to him. He enjoys pitching. It’s certainly sad news for all of us.”