If Cameron Maybin wants to be on the field to do more stuff like he did Friday, when he homered to lead off the Braves’ first inning, then he knows he has to stay healthy.
After a lot of bumps and bruises, not to mention strained muscles, ruptured tendons, bone spurs and torn ligaments, the Braves outfield newcomer said he’s learned a lesson. He’s not taking on outfield walls like he used to. It’s part of his general take-better-care-of-thyself ethos.
“Play smarter, not harder,” he said. “Do what you have to do to stay on the field.”
Maybin, 28, came to the Braves from the Padres in the Sunday six-player trade that sent Braves closer Craig Kimbrel and center fielder Melvin Upton Jr. to San Diego. Maybin was in the lineup in center field for the second consecutive game Friday against Mets left-hander Jonathon Niese.
He could get plenty of starts in a “soft platoon” with primary center fielder Eric Young Jr. That is, if he can stay healthy and productive. The former is a big if, and a reason why the latter has also been difficult for Maybin.
Staying healthy has been a problem throughout his career, and the injuries have surely contributed to the Ashveville, N.C., native not living up to expectations since the Tigers made him the No. 10 overall pick of the June 2005 draft. He’s just a .248 career hitter with a .308 on-base percentage and .672 OPS, although still a good defensive player who retains outstanding speed and more power than his rangy frame suggests.
Most recently, he missed the first part of the 2014 season after rupturing a left biceps tendon attempting a diving catch in a spring training game. He also strained his left calf in June, then served a 25-game suspension during July and August after testing positive for amphetamines.
He finished with 272 plate appearances in 95 games and batted .235 with a .290 OBP for the season. Which was a lot better than the year before, when Maybin played in just 14 games due to wrist and knee injuries.
His right wrist had been an issue for several years, and when Maybin finally had surgery in September 2013, doctors found more damage than anticipated. A lot more damage.
“Three years in a row, I had cortisone shots,” he said. “I had 10 cortisone shots in my wrist in three years. That last cortisone shot it was like, it’s not working. I go in and they say, you’ve got three torn ligaments, bone spurs, and your cartilage is completely gone.”
Between a torn patella tendon in his knee and the wrist problems that made his favored head-first slides a no-no, Maybin was a big-time base stealer, totaling 40 steals in 137 games in 2011 (when he also had eight triples and nine homers) and 26 steals in 2012, both seasons with the Padres.
“Maybin was a nice pience (to get in the trade),” said Braves manager Fredi Gonzalez, who had Maybin on his Marlins teams during parts of three seasons through 2010. “Another guy that you can match up and put him in the game, and you’re comfortable with him because you’ve seen him. I had Maybin when he was a puppy, 21, 22 years old, came from the Tigers. So there’s a comfort level there, I know what he can do.”
Maybin knows that plenty of people have forgotten what he could do, especially since he was doing it on the West Coast for Padres teams that didn’t get much attention. He says he’s made some changes and is ready now, older but wiser, to get his career back on track.
“I’ve had clean eating, clean living, no alcohol, my body feels good,” he said. “It feels fresh. And then, being smart.” He smiled and added, “The outfield wall’s undefeated.”
