Ian Desmond finds sweet spot in Texas outfield after sour free-agency experience
SURPRISE, Ariz. -- Ian Desmond does not view the world as you or I might. He sees his move from shortstop to left field not as an opportunity lost, but an opportunity gained. He frets not over the money he turned down; he is thankful for the money he has earned.
Getting stuck with a qualifying offer? Lingering as a free agent until Feb. 29? Signing a one-year, $8 million deal with the Rangers after rejecting a five-year, $89.5 million extension from the Nationals following the 2013 season and then their $15.8 million qualifying offer?
“It was extremely stressful. And it was challenging,” Desmond said of his free agency Thursday morning. “But that’s why we play baseball. That’s baseball in a nutshell. That’s why I love this game.
“One day you go 0 for 4 and you feel terrible, and the next day you go 4 for 4. That’s the way I think about this offseason. There were days certainly in the offseason where I struck out. But when I got to this camp, the first day I stepped on the field, it was like 4 for 4 with four homers.”
Desmond, 30, will go on to explain that free agency is a privilege, something that only a small percentage of players attain. He will talk about how he wanted to play outfield going back to his time at Sarasota (Fla.) H.S., talk about how he wants the next phase of his career to be better than his first six years.
It is not an act; Desmond’s character is such that union chief Tony Clark considers him “everything that is right about the game.” People gravitate toward Desmond. Clark frequently called and texted him during free agency. Former teammates such as Mark DeRosa and Rick Ankiel provided counsel.
On Thursday, during Clark’s visit to Rangers camp, a reporter asked him if he thought Desmond could be like Andre Dawson in 1987. Dawson, a victim of collusion, offered the Cubs a blank check, signed for $500,000 and proceeded to win the National League MVP Award.
The union is not suggesting the owners engaged in collusion. Desmond admits that some of his problems in free agency were “self-induced,” citing his .233 batting average and 187 strikeouts last season. But when the reporter asked if Desmond could make the other 29 teams regret what they were missing, Clark’s answer was telling.
“I’ll go a step further. He’s going to,” Clark said. “He’s that talented a player. I think it’s a bad story for the industry to tell when talent like Ian’s has a hard time finding an opportunity to play. I expect him to have a phenomenal year, in whatever capacity they decide to use him.”
It is a bad story, but Desmond is determined to make it a good story. The Rangers rave about his transition to left field, though he has yet to catch a flyball in a Cactus League game. Desmond actually clamored for years to play outfield -– in high school, in the low minors. But his coaches always told him, “No, you’re a shortstop.”
“Look, they were right,” Desmond said. “I’ve played six years in the big leagues. I’ve won three Silver Sluggers. I’ve made an All-Star team. But that’s the beauty of free agency. Finally, I get to a point where I can say, ‘Look, this is what I want to do.’ And nobody can really tell me anything different.
“I said something early on, in one of the press conferences here: I’m not running away from something. I’m running to something.”
DeRosa, for one, believes that playing outfield will liberate Desmond, enable him to thrive now that he no longer will see “E-6” attached to his name. Desmond made 27 errors last season, the second-highest total in the majors. He averaged 23.8 errors the past six seasons.
It ate at him.
“I had a great conversation with Rick Ankiel, and he said something that really hit home for me,” Desmond said. “He said, ‘You have to allow yourself to forgive yourself.’ At short, that was something I could never do.
“When there was an E-6, it made my blood boil. I couldn’t allow myself to say, ‘That happens. You make errors.’ This is going to provide that fresh start.”
Desmond likened learning left field to “going back to training wheels,” recognizing that when you take the training wheels off for the first time, the bicycle might tumble.
He is learning to maintain his concentration on every pitch, something that he found easier to do in the infield, where a player is closer to the action. And obviously, he must learn the intricacies of his new position, where to back up, where to throw.
Left field, though, might only be his first step.
Rangers general manager Jon Daniels said that the team’s scouting reports on Desmond in high school said that he had the instincts and body control to play center. The Rangers have discussed that possibility informally; they view Desmond as a potential asset at every position but catcher.
Rangers center fielder Delino DeShields was a revelation last season, producing a .718 OPS after arriving from the Astros in the Rule 5 draft. The Rangers, however, frequently removed DeShields for defense in the late innings. Who knows? If DeShields struggles, maybe Desmond can become an option in center, too.
Desmond would not bite on such talk, endorsing DeShields and saying, “I’m not in this to take anyone’s job.” In fact, he told Rangers officials before he signed that he was concerned about the perception that he might be a threat to Elvis Andrus at shortstop; he wanted them to make it clear that he was not coming to play short, and they did.
Still, Desmond said, “I have never, and will never limit myself. I signed here because I trust they’re going to put me in a position to succeed. Wherever that is, they believe it, so I’ll believe it. And I believe that I can do anything.”
It would be stunning if Desmond, after leaving shortstop, established himself at another up-the-middle position, helping increase his value as a free agent next offseason. But let’s not get ahead of ourselves; he first must master left.
“I don’t think I needed anything to rejuvenate me, but it’s refreshing, for sure,” Desmond said. “It’s refreshing to be on this team, with this group of guys. It’s a fun team. Everyone around the game can see that this team has a blast when they play. But they also play extremely fast and they play extremely hard. That kind of fits my game. The last two years, I’ve kind of lacked the fun aspect of it. That’s the void I’ve been trying to fill.”
Did his lack of fun stem from the way the Nationals were, from shortstop wearing on him, from something else?
“I think it was a little bit of everything,” Desmond said. “The offseason, yeah, it was stressful. But I enjoyed it. It pushed me mentally. It certainly challenged my heart. Every day I would get bad news. And I would just go straight to the cage.”
You or I might be bitter. But the way Desmond views the world, he never would have wound up a Ranger if he had struggled last season. And a Ranger is what he wants to be.
“It all just worked out perfectly,” Desmond said. “I am exactly where I’m supposed to be. I’m not second-guessing at all. I wouldn’t trade it for anything.”
