Up until September 21 of 2024, CJ Abrams was active daily on posting stories on his Instagram account. Since then, nada. His agent put up a collaboration post on Abrams’ page on October 7, and then the well went dry on Abrams’ social media. He has not been posting (on his social media), and not heard from — not even a call with his manager, Dave Martinez, who said in December, “He’s hard to get a hold of.”
That quote got a lot of run on TalkNats social media in an X.com post. First off, why would Martinez say that aloud? Secondly, where is Abrams and his agent on stepping up with a public relations type of response after Abrams’ season abruptly ended with his Sept. 21 demotion to Triple-A.
Here is the full quote from Martinez:
“I called him a few times. He’s hard to get a hold of. I saw his workouts. He’s doing well. Like I said, ‘I love CJ.’ We have an unbelievable relationship. So I’m looking forward to getting him back.”
— Martinez said in December
“As you know, he’s going to be our everyday shortstop. He had a great first half, struggled a little bit the second half, but he’s going to be just fine. Like I said, he’s working. He’s working on his swing. He’s been working out. He’s getting ready to go.”
In reality, the good news is that Abrams looks great, and looks like he put on some upper body muscle. He was just hanging out with his High School baseball team in Georgia. While he has not posted on his social media, he is not in hiding. He has been working out, and staying out of trouble.
THE STATS
Revisiting Abrams’ 2024 season, on July 7, the shortstop was named an All-Star. His slash line was All-Star worthy as he was batting .282, a .353 OBP, and a tremendous .860 OPS. It was downhill in Abrams’ season from that point to his Sept. 21 demotion. In fact, his final 56-games of the 2024 season, he posted a sub-Mendoza .191 batting average with a .575 OPS.
Couple that drop in offense, Abrams defense was terrible during most of the 2024 season where he ranked as the worst defender in MLB. His -17 OAA mark can be seen in the rankings that StatCast objectively measures. Abrams put up the opposite of defensive runs saved (DRS) because he cost his team 13-runs in his poor defense. That changes games, and certainly affected his pitchers in runs squandered. The question is, why did Abrams’ defense decline from last year when he was a -9.0 OAA fielder?
THE FIX
Is there a fix needed? Is something broken? A few fans wanted to point fingers and assess blame on what happened to Abrams in his poor second half of his season, his defense, and his Sept. 21 demotion. But assessing blame is not productive. Fixing the issues is productive.
The complication is if the on-the-field drop-off was caused by off-the-field issues. We do not know that answer. Objectively, we see the statistics. But a statistical demise is not necessarily caused by off-the-field issues. In simplicity, change is not easy. But there are fundamental starting points if there is an off-the-field issue. All people should be surrounding themselves with positive people and a great support system.
Some say addictive behavior gets triggered. What starts as normal, could turn into troubling behavior. And there are theories on cognitive reshaping to change behavior. Suffice it to say, we do not know if anything is wrong with Abrams off-the-field. There are rumors. There was the demotion. Other than that, there are a lot of assumptions. But if there is an issue, it has to start with the person wanting to change, and then changing negative behaviors. You must surround yourself without temptation.
With on-the-field issues, and especially the defense, the Nationals must coach-up Abrams. To go from a -9 OAA to a -17 OAA is nearly doubling his defensive woes. That has to be fixed.
THE POTENTIAL STAR
Do not forget that Abrams reached the 20/20 Club for players that have speed and power with his 20 home runs and 31 stolen bases. He actually finished in the 20/30 Club, and only Alfonso Soriano exceeded that in Washington Nationals history.
There is potentially an MVP type of player within Abrams if he can find his greatness again.
THE FUTURE
There has certainly been enough chatter on Abrams’ defense to think he either has to improve or get moved to second base at some point in his career.
While Abrams ceiling should be even higher, that is all based on potential. The talk of extending Abrams’ contract is definitely now on the back-burner. The talk of seeing Abrams playing well is now one of the major questions for the 2025 season.
