GLENDALE, Ariz. – The 2024 season took Freddie Freeman through some high highs and some low lows.
How else can you describe a season during which Freeman played (at various points) with a broken finger, a rib injury, and a painful ankle injury that required surgery – also persevered through a health scare and illness involving his son, Max – and yet culminated in an iconic moment during a World Series victory?
“Obviously (I) dealt with a lot last year,” Freeman said. “So, hopefully it’s a smoother ride for the Freeman family this year.”
It has already smoothed out for Max, who was diagnosed with Guillain-Barre’ Syndrome last summer but has recovered with the help of physical therapy. He celebrated his fourth birthday this week.
Freddie still has some work to do. He has been limited in the early days of spring training. He hasn’t been cleared to run on the field but has been taking ground balls and batting practice – almost like “a full player,” he joked.
Freeman won’t be in the lineup when the Dodgers start Cactus League games next week but expects to start playing in games – possibly on the minor-league fields – “on the 27th, 28th … as long as my ankle’s good.” That puts him “perfectly on track” to be in the lineup when the Dodgers open the regular-season in Tokyo on March 18.
Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said he “wouldn’t bet against him being ready for Opening Day – he’s very motivated.”
With all of his challenges last season, Freeman missed 15 games – an unsatisfactory number for a player who missed a total of 11 games in the previous six seasons. At age 35 with surgery in his recent past, it might be a good idea to manage Freeman’s playing time, at least early in the season. Roberts knows that won’t be easy.
“I wish we could say we’re going to manage it. I think we’ll manage it in spring training,” Roberts said. “But we saw that leg-out triple against the Padres in the Division Series. So once he’s playing he sort of does his thing.
“But obviously we don’t want this to linger all season and if it calls for him to start late or get days off – whatever makes the most sense we’re going to do.”
Freeman is not backing off.
“The goal is 162,” he said. “Hopefully it’s 161 because I always take the game off after we win the division, but the mindset is still 162 until I get kicked down to the bench one game or two.”
Other numbers took a hit in 2024. Freeman’s batting average (.282), on-base percentage (.378), slugging percentage (.476) and OPS (.854) were all his lowest since 2015 (when he was limited by a wrist injury).
“I had a pretty good first half. I was feeling really good in that Red Sox series coming out of the (All-Star) break,” he said. “And then obviously that Monday, when Max started to limp, I don’t really remember much. It was kind of all a blur. But obviously the numbers took a dip after that.
“I had a lot going on, and I did the best I could with what I was dealt with last year. … Obviously the numbers took a dip. But I thought I was doing really well going through the first half and hopefully we’ll just be … the normal Freddie that I’ve been accustomed to.”
Freeman’s regular-season statistics in 2024 will fade into the mist of history. His World Series Game 1 walkoff grand slam will not and Freeman has been reminded of that repeatedly. Fans have showed him tattoos of the moment and he says he rarely got through a day this winter without someone bringing it up.
“Charlie (his oldest son) and I went down a rabbit hole on YouTube, probably closer to around Christmas I would say just to see the reactions of people watching that game and what it meant to so many people,” Freeman said. “It’s special. And to be able to be a part of that, for a very long time — I’m sure this homer is gonna last for a long time — it meant a lot.
“Obviously what we went through as a family, to have that situation come up … Every day I go out, someone’s always coming up — we had to do our blood draw (as part of his physical) and they were talking to me about the home run during my blood draw today. It’s still going, and it’s cool. It’s special. I’m just glad to be part of so many wonderful memories for so many people.”
ANOTHER ADD
The latest addition to the Dodgers’ list of non-roster invitees in camp is former first-round pick Michael Chavis. Chavis, 29, was signed to a minor-league contract with an invitation to big-league camp.
The 26th overall pick in the 2014 draft, Chavis has played first, second and third base as well as the corner outfield spots in parts of five big-league seasons with the Boston Red Sox, Pittsburgh Pirates and Washington Nationals. He has a career average of .238.
HIs best season came in 2022 with the Pirates. He hit just .229 in 129 games but had 16 doubles and 14 home runs. He spent last year in Triple-A for the Mariners and White Sox, batting .257 with a .776 OPS.