WASHINGTON – When the Padres released Robinson Canó in June, the veteran second baseman received tons of advice. Some came from friends, some from outsiders. Some of it was unsolicited.
Canó, some said, had been in baseball for so long. He already had experienced an accomplished career. He could have hung it up without regrets.
And of course, Canó knew what critics were saying.
“Robbie’s done, whatever, blah, blah, blah,” the 39-year-old recited Tuesday.
Yet here he was, sitting at Truist Park before the second game of a crucial series versus the Mets. His presence is a message in itself.
“Sometimes,” Canó said, “you gotta do what you think is best for you.”
And this was best. Canó didn’t think it was time to go home or retire. Thus, the talented ballplayer, one of his generation’s top hitters, kept going. He has gone from sharing a clubhouse with Alex Rodriguez and Derek Jeter to sitting near 24-year-old Ronald Acuña. He has played with current and future Hall of Famers and current superstars alike. He has experienced everything the game has to offer.
When the Padres released Canó, he easily could’ve walked away. He is an eight-time All-Star who has won five Silver Slugger Awards and two Gold Glove Awards. He has a World Series ring. He’s won the Home Run Derby.
What more could he possibly accomplish?
This is the gist of what people told him.
The conversation, and his thoughts, went like this: “(They said), ‘You should go home.’ I said, ‘No, I love this game. I want to keep playing, and I know that I just need to get consecutive at-bats, and I’ll be the Robbie Canó that I’ve always been.’”
Many players of Canó‘s caliber would’ve accepted the advice. They would’ve stopped there, seeing that there may not be any more talent left to squeeze out of their baseball existences. But Canó, as you can quickly learn, is not like others. He loves – loves – baseball.
And so he signed a minor-league deal with the Padres and went to Triple-A.
“You never forget how to play baseball,” Canó said. “You’re not going to forget how to hit in a year. At the end of the day, just getting the chance, and I thank the Padres for giving me that opportunity to be able to go down there and be able to play every day and just get back and be myself.”
“He obviously loves playing baseball,” Braves manager Brian Snitker said. “It’s not about the money. … I think he just likes playing baseball. He’s one of those guys that can still do it that wants to keep doing it. Going to Triple-A and playing and working his way back, it shows his love and desire for the game.”
The Braves believed in Canó enough to take a low-risk chance. The Mets are fronting most of the salary from a big contract he signed with Seattle years ago. The Braves understand the second baseman might not have anything left, but they view it as a success if he even helps them win one game. They’re not losing anything by giving him an opportunity.
At Triple-A for the Padres, Canó hit .333 with an .854 OPS. He homered three times and drove in 20 runs over 96 at-bats. The Braves saw it: Once Canó finally began playing regularly, he started hitting. The Braves liked his exit velocity figures.
“I mean, I love this game,” Canó said, “and I know I can play this game.”
But the truth is still there: Since the Mets traded for Canó before the 2019 season, he has, for the most part, underperformed at the major-league level. He hit well in 2020, but news of a positive test for PEDs – the second of his career – broke after that season. MLB suspended Canó for all of 2021.
Asked about testing positive twice for PEDs in his career, Canó said: “I don’t go back and look. For me, just move forward and keep playing.”
Entering Thursday’s series opener in Washington, Canó is 3-for-7 in his first two games with the Braves. He’s made a couple of nice defensive plays. The Braves simply need him to be better than Phil Gosselin, whose roster spot he took.
Canó has learned a lot in this game, especially about failure. With a look to his left or right as a young Yankee, he would see a star. He could ask anyone for advice. Along the way, he picked up tons of lessons about hitting -- and more.
One of them: Baseball, he said, is a game of failure. No one knows what Canó will do or how he’ll play, but understanding that lesson could help him stay level as he attempts to once again find footing in the majors.
“If you get three hits out of 10 at-bats, you’re one of the greatest hitters that ever played this game,” Canó said. “You know how hard it is, (so) you don’t want to focus on just listening to what people say. It’s easy for writers, media, whoever to say something. It’s like if I’m trying to say something about a reporter – I don’t know because I’ve never been a reporter.
“It’s just the same thing with the game. It’s so hard that you just got to focus. You need to understand that you’re not a robot, you’re not a machine that you just put in 4-for-4 with four homers. You need to understand that you’re a human, you’re going to fail. And then every time you fail, it’s going to make you stronger and better.”
Canó has a long list of career achievements. When he reflects on his time in the majors, from 2005 until now, he doesn’t think about the specific accomplishments.
“I haven’t looked at that, but I look back on how long I’ve been playing this game and that I was able to play this game for so long,” Canó said. “I feel blessed. For you to play only one day in the big leagues, you’re already winning.”
Then Canó adds this: He doesn’t know the exact percentage of people who make it to the big leagues, but he knows it’s low.
“What else can you ask God to give you?” he says.
