“Don’t call it a comeback, I’ve been here for years.”
LL Cool J said it best with the opening lyrics of his early-nineties hit “Mama Said Knock You Out.” When an artist or athlete spends time out of the spotlight, it’s easy to forget just how valuable they are to the industry.
With the MLB season currently on hiatus, four former All-Stars that remain unsigned hope to remind the baseball world of their formidable talent.
Like LL Cool J, these veteran ballplayers have been around for years. But do they still have a chance of latching on with a major league team?
Let’s examine each of these players — Bartolo Colón, José Bautista, Matt Harvey, and Francisco Rodriguez — on a case-by-case basis to determine which of them might return to the big leagues this year.
Bartolo Colón
I wish I knew how to quit you, Big Sexy.
Bartolo Colón, the enduring fan favorite who happens to be the all-time wins leader among Latin-born pitchers, is looking to return to the majors for a twenty-second season.
The rubber-armed righty last pitched in the majors in 2018, when he recorded a 5.78 ERA over 28 appearances for the Texas Rangers. He was even worse the year before, when he pitched to an abysmal 6.48 ERA over 143 combined innings for the Braves and Twins.
Despite those struggles, Colón believes he still has something left in the tank. In an interview with ESPN’s Marly Rivera, Colón expressed his desire to pitch for one more season. He also has a particular team in mind: the New York Mets.
Big Sexy cherished his time in the Big Apple, telling Rivera, “I’ve played with 10 teams, but with the Mets, the way all those players treated me, how that entire franchise treated me, from the front office to the kitchen staff, it was amazing. And Mets fans are the best…”
The soon-to-be 47-year-old rarely reaches the 90s with his fastball anymore, and his propensity for allowing home runs is not well-suited to today’s power-obsessed game.
Likelihood of a Return
A pitcher like Colon would typically be more valuable over a full-length season when he could absorb about 150 innings. That said, I wouldn’t rule out a comeback just yet. Fans can’t get enough of Big Sexy, and are eager to buy any type of merchandise featuring his likeness.
If the 2020 season is to be played without fans, teams could view his arrival as a way to drum up excitement and increase jersey sales. He’s also an invaluable resource for young Hispanic players, who view him as a font of sage advice.
Click here for my review of Big Sexy’s recently published autobiography
José Bautista
José Bautista has the most intriguing comeback story of this particular group. Bautista, nicknamed “Joey Bats,” now wants to be known for more than his bat.
That’s right. A player who has clubbed 344 home runs over fifteen big league seasons is working to add another talent to his repertoire. Bautista still views himself as a position player first and foremost. But he understands that two-way players like Shohei Ohtani are highly coveted assets, and that a new MLB rule allows teams to designate roster spots for two-way players. To accommodate the increased demand for defensive versatility, he’s been honing his pitching skills.
And, as evidenced by recent social media posts, he may have some natural talent on the mound.
Bautista is still close with former Toronto teammate Marcus Stroman and worked out with him in Tampa this offseason. Videos of Bautista pitching to Stroman recently surfaced on Stroman’s Twitter account, along with praise for Bautista’s pitching prowess.
Stroman wrote that Bautista “could EASILY pitch in a big league bullpen” and that his “sinker, slider, changeup are MLB ready.”
Stro is clearly a believer in Bautista, but does Joey Bats actually have the arm needed to resurrect his career?
Likelihood of a Return
At 39 years old, it’s clear that Bautista’s best days at the plate are behind him. His power has declined precipitously, as demonstrated by his .371 slugging percentage over 1,085 plate appearances since the start of 2017. What he has retained from his glory days, however, is above-average plate discipline.
Joey Bats posted a respectable .348 OBP in 2018, his most recent season in the big leagues. His walk rate (16.8 %) was also the fourth-highest among players with at least 300 plate appearances that season, trailing only Mike Trout, Bryce Harper, and Joey Votto. This proves that, at the very least, he can still reach base at a decent clip.
Modern teams prefer to fill out their bench with younger internal options, so Bautista’s best bet for a return is to harness his raw pitching talent and become a viable two-way player.
Matt Harvey
“The Dark Knight Returns.”
I can already picture the headlines that would accompany Matt Harvey’s return to a major league mound. It’s been a rough couple of years for Harvey, who has been caught in a downward spiral since Game 5 of the 2015 World Series.
Injuries, including thoracic outlet syndrome and a stress fracture in his right scapula, have derailed Harvey’s once highly promising career. The Scott Boras client was able to secure $11 million from the Angels on a one-year deal for 2019, only to be released in July after pitching to a woeful 7.09 ERA in twelve starts.
Harvey’s fall from grace has been well documented, including his refusal to accept a minor league assignment that ultimately led to his departure from Queens.
With baseball on hiatus due to the coronavirus pandemic, Harvey has been working to show that he still has what it takes to pitch in the majors. He’s posted videos of his bullpen sessions on Instagram in the hopes of attracting a club’s attention.
However, there remains serious doubt as to whether he can contribute quality innings to a big league staff.
Likelihood of a Return
Harvey’s most appealing attribute is his age. Thirty-one is certainly not young by today’s standards, but it is young enough for teams to take a flyer on the righty. No one is under the impression he’ll regain his ace status; the hope is that he can reinvent himself, perhaps as a reliever.
Harvey seems humbled by his recent failures, which is why I don’t see his attitude presenting an obstacle for prospective teams. Indeed, the key for Harvey will be regaining some of the velocity he lost after undergoing thoracic outlet surgery years ago. He may also need to add a new pitch to his arsenal.
Francisco Rodriguez
Francisco Rodriguez hasn’t appeared on a big league mound since 2017, but that hasn’t stopped him from planning another comeback attempt.
Rodriguez, who turned 38 in January, ranks fourth on the all-time saves list with 437. His goal is to save at least 41 more games to match the total of Hall of Famer Lee Smith.
K-Rod’s last big league stint for the Tigers was a disaster; he pitched to a 7.82 ERA and blew six of his thirteen save attempts. Since then, he’s pitched in the Nationals minor league system, in independent ball, and in the Mexican League.
The reason for K-Rod’s comeback effort is simple: he still has plenty of competitive fire. He remains undeterred by his doubters, telling Venezuelan journalist Guillermo Arcay, “Many say it’s impossible. Impossible was a child leaving the Barrio Kennedy (in Caracas, Venezuela) and succeeding abroad. If you had asked me 25 years ago if I was going to be one of the best five closers in the big leagues, I would have told you that it was impossible.”
Likelihood of a Return
The fact that K-Rod wasn’t signed by an MLB team after his successful stint with the Long Island Ducks in 2018 (2.76 ERA in 41.1 innings) does not bode well for his prospects in the game. With the overwhelming number of hard-throwing relievers under team control throughout the majors, it seems that K-Rod’s journey is at an end.
Searle’s Final Say
Baseball is increasingly a young man’s game, and three of the aforementioned players (Colón, Bautista, and K-Rod) are 38 or older. As a result, it’s unlikely that any of them will sign a major league contract. I could see one of Colón’s former teams bringing him back for sentimental reasons and to increase TV viewership. Otherwise, he’s out of luck.
And, despite his injury woes and overall decline, teams may still see Matt Harvey as an intriguing reclamation project. He’d almost certainly have to sign a minor league deal, but there’s still a slight chance he could rebound as a reliever.
As for José Bautista, I believe he could start a trend of players reinventing themselves as position player/pitcher hybrids. He clearly has the potential to succeed on the mound; the only question is whether he’ll receive the opportunity to do so.
Of this group, Francisco Rodriguez has the most difficult path back to the majors. His age and diminished velocity, combined with the abundance of quality relief options in the game, likely signal the end of K-Rod’s major league career.
No matter what happens with these former All-Stars, I wish them luck in their efforts to return to “the Show.”
