NORTH PORT, Fla. — Former Detroit Tigers reliever Joe Jiménez sipped a cup of coffee and tapped his phone while sitting in the chair at his locker inside the Atlanta Braves’ clubhouse. He’s wearing new colors in a new environment for the first time in his professional career.
It’s an odd look.
“It was a surprise for me,” Jiménez, 28, said Saturday, before the Tigers and Braves played in spring training. “I really thought that I was going to stay there for one more year before free agency. It’s a business. It happens. I didn’t have any say in this, but I’m glad that I’m here with the Braves.”
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The Tigers traded Jiménez to the Braves this past December — on the final day of the winter meetings — for two minor-league players: third baseman/outfielder Justyn-Henry Malloy and left-handed reliever Jake Higginbotham. The Tigers, led by president of baseball operations Scott Harris, agreed to the trade because they think Malloy can help reshape their offensive identity.
Jiménez never wanted to leave his first organization.
“Maybe at the trade deadline,” Jiménez said. “I didn’t think it was going to be in the offseason.”
The 2022 season marked the best year of Jiménez’s up-and-down career. The right-hander posted a 3.49 ERA with 13 walks and 77 strikeouts in 56⅔ innings across 62 appearances.
Tigers manager A.J. Hinch went from sending Jiménez to Triple-A Toledo in spring training ahead of the 2021 campaign to employing him as a high-leverage reliever last season.
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“I love him as a man,” Hinch said. “He’s good at what he does. He trains. He works. He cares. The Braves got better when they acquired him. When I met him as an All-Star in 2018 to where he is today, both personally and professionally, I’m a big fan.”
Joining the Braves gives Jiménez an immediate opportunity to compete for a World Series championship. He has been in the majors for six years without a postseason appearance.
The Braves, meanwhile, have won the National League East — a tough division which includes the New York Mets and Philadelphia Phillies — for five consecutive seasons. They advanced to the NL Championship Series twice and were crowned 2021 World Series champions upon beating the Houston Astros.
“I’m thankful for being in this clubhouse with really great players,” Jiménez said. “We don’t have any holes on this team. It’s just unbelievable.”
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The Tigers haven’t advanced to the playoffs since 2014. That was about 15 months after Jiménez signed as an 18-year-old undrafted free agent out of the Puerto Rico Baseball Academy.
The vibes are different with the Braves.
“Detroit is on the way to being one of the teams,” Jiménez said, “and hopefully, they do a lot better this year.”
Over the past three months, Jiménez has stayed in touch with his former teammates from the Tigers. He mentioned talking to fellow right-handed relievers Jose Cisnero and Alex Lange. Another reliever, left-hander Gregory Soto, was traded to the Philadelphia Phillies in January.
Trading Soto left the Tigers without a solidified closer.
Then, Jiménez called Lange to discuss the situation.
“I’ve seen him since he got to the Tigers,” Jiménez said. “I told him, ‘I think you’re prepared for the job.’ Now that nobody’s there, it’s his turn to at least get a chance. I think he will be good. He has everything to be successful in the big leagues.”
Lange had a 3.41 ERA in 2022 with 31 walks and 82 strikeouts in 63⅓ innings across 71 appearances. He generates swings and misses as often as any reliever in baseball, a product of his curveball and changeup, but must cut down on the free passes if he wants the top job in the bullpen.
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Had the Tigers kept Jiménez, he would have been a natural fit for the closer role this season. Instead, he is gearing up to pitch as a high-leverage reliever in a winning bullpen for the Braves.
Still, the Tigers mean “everything” to him.
“They gave me the opportunity from the beginning,” Jiménez said. “They were the only team to give me the opportunity coming out of Puerto Rico. Not just that, but developing me as a player through the minor leagues and six years in the big leagues. I’m really thankful to them. Things were not going so well for a couple years, but they still gave me the opportunity. It means a lot to me.”
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Contact Evan Petzold at epetzold@freepress.com or follow him on Twitter @EvanPetzold.