Robbie Grossman played just one season for AJ Hinch in Houston in 2015, but the outside player has a lot of respect for the former Astros coach. So when the new Tigers captain spoke to him about coming to Detroit, Grossman heard. “I spoke to him a few times. He left
“I spoke to him a few times. He told me the direction you are going, ”Grossman said in a videoconference on Wednesday afternoon with reporters. “I have the greatest respect for him and what he did and how he handles his business and just being a Tiger.”
Hinch’s involvement was a reflection of what Grossman called the “aggressive” recruitment of the free agent, culminating on Tuesday in a two-year contract worth $ 10 million. It is the first agreement in several years that the Tigers have concluded with a free agent since the Justin Upton agreement in January 2016. Hinch, Grossman said, was a “big reason” that he decided to sign.
“We catch up and talk a little bit about the team and our needs and in the future,” said Grossman. “And I’m on board. I’m ready to start and ready to go down to Lakeland. “
It is not just familiarity. In many ways, Grossman fits into the project of how Hinch wants to improve the lineup of the Tigers who led the league in eliminations for the past two years while struggling to get ties. It brings the kind of tenacious attack that Hinch has referred to several times since his signing on October 30.
Grossman’s 0.252 career batting average doesn’t stand out, and his 0.241 average last year certainly doesn’t. But his 21 walks in 51 games increased his percentage on a base to 0.344, while his eight home runs and 12 doubles in the abbreviated season resulted in 130 OPS +.
“My ultimate goal is to have a quality club, whether it be hitting, walking, pitching or doing a home run,” he said. “There are quality hitting in baseball and bad hitting, and the more quality hitting you have, the better it will be for you each night of victory.”
He is a different hitter than many who can remember his three years in Minnesota from 2016-18. His increase in power was a reflex of pulling the ball more often, something he credits to A hitting coach Darren Bush and former Astros teammate Jed Lowrie for helping him succeed.
“He came to me,” Grossman said of Bush, “and said, ‘Hey, we saw how much you invested in it. We know the type of player you want to be. Here’s what you need to do to become who you want to be. ‘
“It really broke for the simplest thing for me. I had to use my legs more. I had to be more balanced on the plate. I had to make my hands stay linear with the central field. And I kind of ran with it. I want to be the best major league player I can be, and I continue to grow and continue to stay and learn as much as I can, absorb as much as I can to become that. “
While Tigers prioritized launching on this free market, hiring José Ureña last month, they quietly entered the foreign market early on. Grossman was one of the top players on the list, a 31-year-old hitter with a history, but also with an advantage coming out of one of the best seasons of his career.
He didn’t face the Tigers last year, but he has a fair amount of success against them. He is 8 of 27 with two home runs and six RBIs from new teammate Matthew Boyd, who reached him with a text message Tuesday night to welcome him to Detroit.
Grossman also played enough at Comerica Park to see what the atmosphere can be like when the team is doing well.
“My family has been to Detroit many times. I know what the team means to that city, ”he said.
Put it all together and Grossman was sold.
“They were very aggressive in letting me know that I was the guy they really wanted,” said Grossman, “and it meant a lot to me. (…) It is a privilege to be a free agent for more than six years and that the Tigers had so much confidence in me, and they proved it. Now it’s my job to go out there and earn it every day. “
Jason Beck has been covering Tigers for MLB.com since 2002. Read Beck’s blog and follow him on Twitter @beckjason.