Matt Holliday was one of the many veteran players who sat through a brutally slow free-agent market this winter and came away without a contract for the 2018 season, but the seven-time All-Star is still hoping for a chance to get back on the field, he tells Dan Caesar of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch.
Holliday, now 38 years of age, explains that he still believes he’s capable of playing at a high level and has a desire to remain in the game. For the time being, he’s doing some work with MLB Network Radio on SiriusXM, where he’ll make weekly appearances on the Inside Pitch show with Casey Stern every Tuesday, beginning next week. But Holliday adds that he’s working out every day and keeping himself in shape in the event that the right team comes calling. He does sound as though he’ll be a bit selective.
“Not every opportunity is a great one,” Holliday told Caesar. “But if (the right one) comes along … I’m interested. If not, I’m enjoying my time with my family. I’ve got four kids. I’ve played a long time.”
What, precisely, determines the “right” opportunity for Holliday isn’t entirely clear. It’s easy to imagine that he’d prefer the opportunity to join a contending club, but perhaps he’d also prefer a team in relative proximity to his home in Jupiter, Fla.
Presumably, if Holliday were to sign anywhere, he’d have to agree to a minor league deal and head to Triple-A to get some reps in a game setting before joining a big league club. That’d likely come with a relatively minimal salary that’s pro-rated for time spent on the big league roster, though salary probably won’t be the biggest factor for a player who’s earned roughly $160MM over the course of a brilliant playing career.
Holliday spent the 2017 campaign with the Yankees, serving as the primary DH in the Bronx and hitting a respectable .231/.316/.432 with 19 homers and 18 doubles in 427 trips to the plate over the life of 105 games. That marked the lone season in his 14-year MLB career that Holliday turned in an OPS+ south of the league average, though at 95, he wasn’t far off. The Astros, Twins, Indians, Tigers, Orioles and Royals are the only AL clubs that have received below-average production out of the DH spot in their lineup thus far in the 2018 season. It’s always possible that an injury in either league could create a potential opening for Holliday as well.
Class act,hopefully someone gives him a chance…
Whenever I think of class I think of two things:: Fedoras and the Cardinals
Really? Aren’t the cardinals the ones who hacked the astros ?
A class act for example would be the padres keeping a well regarded prospect long ago that suffered a life altering disease and was unable to play anymore
Or the Marlins not only retiring Fernandez number but setting his daughter up
The same can be said about kc pitcher Ventura when they could have easily said no to the contract
StL helped Stephen Piscotty out by sending him to Oakland to be near his ailing mother. Cardinals Care does an enormous amount of work. Padres have a GM with questionable dealings. Every team has SOMETHING. Correa was fired, then convicted. Correa, as in a single person.
I was being silly. Anytime you see anything about the Cardinals you know someone is going to use the word class or some form of it. Comment one and they didn’t disappoint.
I think he was joking man
The Cardinals didn’t hack anything. It was a employee who went rogue
Absolutely a class Act. Knows how to make young players know how to win Championships. Plus, great clubhouse man and still a good power hitter and rbi man!!!!
He was not a class act when he was with the A’s.
If the NL adopted the DH rule no doubt he would get signed
If the AL got rid of the DH rule no doubt he would retire. By the time either actually has a chance of happening, he will have retired.
That is true. Was hurt last year but was solid.
But no DL in the NL. A league that still requires managerial decisions. Also have to throw the ball catch the ball AND hit the ball. The way baseball was intended to be played!
Watching the pitcher strike out 80% of the time: boring. The only league that requires it.
If you sit through an entire game and get bored because of what is usually just a couple plate appearances before going to the bench, you need your meds adjusted
Or watch something else
Need ur meds adjusted watching the ongoing commercials each RH/LH needless pitching change involved during NL games when some PH comes in for the previous PH. Option? Either fall asleep, or switch over to more exciting AL game.
Is it wrong to want more offensive production?
Managers actually have to do something in the nl
If you think the NL is just watching the pitchers strike out you have no clue about baseball
I have watched NL baseball for nearly 40 years. Unfortunately, it is obsolete. There are several issues: 1. Pitchers don’t pitch deep into games very often to force the manager to make a strategic decision 2. Bullpen pitchers make too much money 3. Teams keep 13 pitchers now, back in the day it was 11 4. With less pitchers teams had 6 man benches, now they have 4 5. Because pitchers hit NL managers are hamstrung on the moves they can make with 4 bench players 6. Pitchers, for the most part, don’t care about hitting 7. Baseball is a sport, not art, things change. I used to enjoy the strategy but it doesn’t exist anymore.
Amazing everything you just said was wrong.
Holliday is 38 and put up seasons of 0.8, 0.3, and 0.0 WAR the last three years. In the past players like him and Jayson Werth would retire. Sometimes players would retire when they still had something left in the tank. Players are trying to hang on longer right now, however. Maybe it’s money. I don’t know. When they don’t retire you get a glut of unsigned free agents.
It’s probably because he loves the game of baseball and doesn’t want to leave it, not everything has to be about the money. I’m sure $160 mil has done just fine for him and his family. Just a thought.
Holliday was actually fantastic for the first half of the season. Then he got this virus and was never able to get it back. He’s a great clubhouse guy and still a league average hitter. He’ll get a shot
Hitting a respectable .231 ???? @Steve Adams
Batting Average isn’t the only statistic that matters!
His OBP wasn’t good either…
.319 Is not bad, it’s pretty respectable. So is .751 ops.
holliday is a great guy hope he catches on but the article shows whats wrong with baseball today and why todays players have such inflated ideas of their worth,…the article talks about holidays year and says he had a RESPECTABLE batting avg of .231. respectable???? in my day hed be on the bench or in the minors or cut loose. res[ectable is maybe around 280?????
Batting Average isn’t the only statistic that matters.
.280 is very good.
It might not be the only stat that matters but it still matters.
Barely!
Why did you just ignore the obp and slugging?
In your day they evaluated hitters using a sundial. Don’t be upset because evaluations are more accurate now.
Add 2 slots to make rosters 27, the trade off is getting rid of the stupid DH rule. Play baseball as it was intended.
You NL non-DH people are dead wrong. The game didn’t change when the Dh was introduced, it changed when pitchers stopped practicing and caring about hitting. The DH just recognizes that reality. Also the managerial strategy thing is garbage. Oh double switch so brilliant. In the AL a manager has to really know when it’s time to take out a pitcher, the decision isn’t made for him by the score and when the useless pitcher is coming to bat.