Javier Báez lets the Cubs know: ‘I don’t want to play for another team’

MESA, Ariz. — As the Cubs weigh their options for the future, Javier Báez said he will “probably” put a deadline on any extension talks during spring training, trying to avoid making his contract a distraction during the season.

“I don’t like to play with that pressure,” Báez said Friday. “We’ll see what happens, where we are in the conversation. But, obviously, I want to stay here.”

They all sit down in the media room at the Sloan Park complex and say they want to stay — Anthony Rizzo, Kris Bryant, even Jake Arrieta, returning on a one-year deal, thinks he could pitch for the Cubs into his late 30s. There are only a few glamour teams out there, and the Cubs are still one of them, despite their downsizing during the COVID-19 pandemic. Báez was the one actually making progress toward a long-term contract in March when Major League Baseball shut down spring training.

“We didn’t ever talk about numbers,” Báez said. “But we had a good conversation about the stuff that I can do, the stuff that I’m willing to do and the plan that I have for the future. Obviously, like I said, I want to stay here. I don’t want to play for another team.”

The Cubs were supposed to build a dynasty after winning the 2016 World Series, but in hindsight Báez can see the cracks in the foundation. Playing in the 2017 World Baseball Classic and posing for ESPN The Magazine’s Body Issue were some of the unique experiences that eventually took a toll on a young player trying to build a big-league career while dealing with a new level of fame.

Báez said he can feel the hunger returning to a team that has been discounted by the projection systems, oddsmakers and local/national media talking about the window closing and a sell-off at the trade deadline. Though Báez can be quiet and guarded — the opposite of how he plays the game on the field — there are also moments of raw honesty when he speaks.

“I kind of got away from baseball,” Báez said. “Mentally, got away from baseball, because all this stuff that we did, it had the fans or people or family seeing me in different ways. Seeing me as an actor, as a rapper, as a something (else). It was like, ‘Javy, can you do a video for this? Javy, can you do this? Can you do that?’

“I wasn’t into baseball. I wasn’t trying to get better every day. I was playing because of my talent. These past two years, I was into it. I was into baseball. That’s why (last year) was so frustrating.”

Báez compartmentalized his bad offensive numbers during the 60-game season and focused on his defense, winning his first Gold Glove. The Cubs aren’t going to get 40,000 fans into Wrigley Field on Opening Day, but indications are the team and City Hall are optimistic about limited crowds attending games this season. Of all the Cubs hitters, Báez in particular missed the roar and the energy in the stands as well as access to in-game video.

Candid thoughts from Báez are always appreciated, but the World Series hangover has been kind of played out as an explanation for the decline of the post-2016 Cubs. Báez’s OPS jumped 59 points in 2017. He finished second in the 2018 National League MVP voting and returned to the All-Star Game in 2019, finishing with 29 homers and 85 RBIs after sitting out most of September with a fractured left thumb.

“There’s just been a maturation process that has gone on each and every year,” said Cubs manager David Ross, who played with Báez in 2015 and 2016 and stayed connected to the team as a special assistant for three seasons. “Learning about himself, having success early on and being on a championship team, going through some struggles, having an MVP-caliber season, he’s kind of run the gamut.

“When he gets to be himself — the pure entertainer — he’s at his best. I’m looking for a great season from Javy. I think he’s going to have a special year, getting fans back in the stands, getting video back, all those things that play into a normal routine for him.”

Ross got carried off the field on teammates’ shoulders after Game 7 of the World Series. The backup catcher wrote a book, worked for ESPN and appeared on “Saturday Night Live” and “Dancing with the Stars.”

“I was a terrible player and got all that fame,” Ross said. “I don’t want to speak for Javy, but I can speak for (myself): You’re a rock star when you walk around Chicago. You’ve got a lot of people pulling at you in a lot of different ways. Even with the maturity level that I felt like I had, it felt overwhelming at times. And I didn’t have to play baseball anymore. There’s definitely something to that.”

Báez at the age of 28 and only months away from free agency is not an exact comparison to Fernando Tatis Jr. signing a 14-year, $340 million “statue contract” with the Padres after only 143 major-league games. Báez also knows there is a great class of shortstops positioned to hit the free-agent market after this season: Francisco Lindor, Corey Seager, Carlos Correa, Trevor Story, Andrelton Simmons and Marcus Semien. That will be a pressure point for both sides in the next round of negotiations.

“I don’t compare my career with other shortstops or other players,” Báez said. “I play my game. I just let my game talk.”

(Photo: Matt Kartozian / USA Today)