CLEVELAND — Cleveland Indians infielder Jake Bauers was expecting a check-in conversation with his agent during the early part of the offseason, but the December phone call was anything but about his workouts and health.
While having a cup of coffee, Bauers learned that he had been traded from the Tampa Bay Rays to the Indians, and three-plus months removed from the deal, the 23-year-old versatile player is ready to get to work with the three-time defending American League Central Division championships.
“Just kind of made the decision to get excited about it and get excited about a new opportunity and coming over with a chance to prove myself,” Bauers said shortly after reporting to spring training in Goodyear, Arizona. “I’m ready to get going, and ready to get into games.”
Bauers’ versatility and athleticism could be major factors in how the Indians shape their 25-man roster, as he can play infield on days when first baseman Carlos Santana is off or serving as the designated hitter or be a platoon player for a team short on Major League experience in the outfield.
Although Bauers had a .201 batting average in 96 games with the Rays last season, he scored 48 runs, drove in 48 and finished with 35 extra-base hits, including 22 doubles, 11 home runs and two triples. Plus, Bauers drew 54 walks to raise his on-base percentage to .316.
“Coming in, getting called up and having that immediate success was great in terms of establishing myself and establishing, ‘Hey, I can do this. I belong here,’” Bauers said. “It kind of gave me a confidence boost, and then, it quickly turned the other way and I got humbled a little bit.
“Really, it kind of made it clear that there were things I had to work on, some things that I need to get better at, and so, that’s what I did this offseason. I went in, and excuse my language, I worked my ass off and came in ready to go.”
Because there were plenty of struggles and slumps at the big-league level, Bauers spent much of the offseason working on fundamentals and trying to get his game as consistent as possible heading into his first spring training with the Indians.
Now, Bauers is ready to the test that work he put in during the offseason in spring-training games and looks forward to doing what he can to help the Indians content for a fourth straight AL Central Division title.
“I think anytime you’re going through something tough or something trying, you need to grow as a person,” Bauers said. “I think it’s important to, every day, do some positive things, whether it be a big thing or a little thing, just anything to kind of keep that train rolling.
“When you do those things, they really stack up. You do one little thing positive, and it leads to another one, leads to another one, leads to another one. That’s where the momentum came in. It was really about just keeping that consistency throughout the offseason of growing and changing.”