The Amazins' prized offseason addition was benched on Thursday after his 0-for-6 performance that included four strikeouts in the Mets' 14-inning loss to the Diamondbacks on Wednesday night. But this was no rare slip-up by Bay, as the former All Star and last season's AL MVP candidate is chipping in with just six homers, a .257 BA and 44 RBIs in 92 games played.
"One day off will only clear your head a little bit," Bay told the New York Post before the Mets' 2-0 loss on Thursday. "Then you have to go out there after that. It's straight battle mode all the time. It's just not comfortable."
What appeared to be a devastating loss to the Red Sox and the most significant free agent pick-up in all of baseball over the winter has now turned into the laughingstock of the National League. Surprise, surprise — it's at the hands of the New York Mets.
So take a moment, Red Sox Nation, and feel free to laugh out loud at Omar Minaya's expense for the umpteenth time this season. But while the Mets organization's anti-Midas Touch is grounds for a sitcom, Bay's struggles this season serve as a frightening reminder of what could have been if he re-signed and stuck around the Hub for a few more years.
It's been nearly two years to the day that the Sox sent Manny Ramirez to Los Angeles and welcomed Jason Bay to town at the trade deadline. The slugging left fielder was the perfect fit for a club that finally fell ill of Manny being Manny. Bay had a smooth stroke, some fierce pop, and hustle in his step — three ingredients that helped the Sox reach the ALCS in his first year in the shadows of the Green Monster before spinning out his most productive year at the dish in 2009.
After rattling 36 homers and plating in 119 RBIs in the contract year, Bay set sail for greener pastures in NYC, where he was expected to add a spark to an already-talented lineup that included Jose Reyes, David Wright and Carlos Beltran.
Instead, he's simply an empty bat in an injury-plagued lineup.
Bay, who bagged an $8.5 million signing bonus and is guaranteed $66 million under the four-year contract, is batting .169 (10-for-59) in July with only two extra-base hits and no home runs. The streaky hitter with a history of strikeout fever, Bay is on pace to finish the campaign with career-low stats in nearly every department including homer runs (10) and RBIs (75).
By comparison, Bay cranked 10 taters in 28 games in the month of May alone last season with the Sox.
"I am somewhat surprised [by Bay]," manager Jerry Manuel said. "I really thought this was kind of a good opportunity to get away from the pressures, the anxiety he has when he's in New York. I thought he would get out here on the west coast and take off.
"We're going to come out [Friday] and take some early BP and try and see if Jason can just find his way," Manuel added. "We're going to stay out here until the process is right."
Apparently, $66 million doesn't go as far as it used to.
