<\/p>\n
MILWAUKEE \u2013 My question to Los Angeles Dodgers first baseman Freddie Freeman was straightforward: Is he worried his quest for 3,000 hits might be interrupted by a lockout that forces the cancellation of games next season?<\/p>\n
Freeman, 36, answered as you might expect, saying he hopes the owners and players reach a new collective-bargaining agreement without that kind of disruption. He then took the conversation in a different direction, expressing a more profound concern about sticking around long enough to get the 519\u00a0hits necessary for 3,000.<\/p>\n
\u201cObviously, getting 3,000 hits would be very, very cool,\u201d Freeman said. \u201cBut ever since baby girl came into this world about a month ago, my perspective has changed a little bit on individual stats and how long I would want to play.\u201d<\/p>\n
On April 19, Freeman and his wife, Chelsea, became parents to their fourth child and first daughter, London. One of London\u2019s middle names, Rosemary, is in honor of Freeman\u2019s mother, who died of melanoma when he was 10.<\/p>\n
Freeman said he still plans to play three more seasons after this one, provided he remains healthy and productive. But he already has spoken with Chelsea about the pangs of regret he is experiencing being away from London.<\/p>\n
Leaving for road trips without his sons \u2013 Charlie, 9; Brendan, 5; and Maximus, 5 \u2013 also is difficult, Freeman said. But the boys love baseball and like watching him play. London will have few memories, if any, of her father in uniform even if he reaches his goal of completing 20 major-league seasons and playing until age 40.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m missing things for something she\u2019ll never know,\u201d Freeman said. \u201cShe\u2019s not going to know I missed these things either. But it weighs on me and my heart. I think everybody who knows me knows it weighs on me hard.<\/p>\n
\u201cAll I ever wanted was a family. But all I ever wanted to do was play baseball, too. It\u2019s such a hard thing, it really is.\u201d<\/p>\n
Freeman knows countless people sacrifice family time to put food on the table, many by traveling for work. He understands he is more fortunate than most. His career earnings by the time his contract with the Dodgers expires after next season will be nearly $300 million.<\/p>\n
Yet, even though he is a nine-time All-Star, three-time World Series champion and former National League MVP and World Series MVP, he has the same conflicting emotions as any parent who spends time away from their child.<\/p>\n
\u201cI don\u2019t like seeing my daughter grow up on a FaceTime call,\u201d Freeman said. \u201cWhen I\u2019m sitting in a hotel room by myself at night after a game, I\u2019m just like, \u2018Oh man, what am I doing?\u2019<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m not trying to sound like it\u2019s just me. Believe me, I get it. But when you\u2019ve done a job for as long as I have and achieved almost everything, to be still missing things, that\u2019s what\u2019s hard on older guys in this game.\u201d<\/p>\n
That\u2019s Freddie the father talking. Freddie the baseball player is the other factor in this equation. And Freddie the baseball player is still quite capable.<\/p>\n
Freeman, who currently is batting .260 with a .803 OPS \u2013 \u201cgood, but not what I\u2019m accustomed to\u201d \u2013 said he never thought about individual milestones as a younger player.<\/p>\n
He added that winning remains his priority, and that if he ever got to the point where he was more concerned with individual achievements, it would be a sign he lost his way. But as his career totals began to accumulate, he set three goals \u2013 3,000 hits, 1,000 extra-base hits and 5,000 total bases.<\/p>\n
He needs only 31\u00a0extra-base hits for 1,000, and this season could become the 40th player in NL history to reach that figure. He is 770 total bases short of 5,000, a total attained by only 22 players. And with a career batting average of .299, he is the active leader in hits, with Jose Altuve next at 2,428. Only 33 have made it to 3,000.<\/p>\n
\u201cIf I can reach a couple of \u2018em, that would be pretty cool,\u201d Freeman said. \u201cI just always viewed myself as trying to be the best hitter I can possibly be. I\u2019ve never changed. There is so much about launch angles, trajectories, hitting home runs. I knew who I was. Being stubborn and knowing who I was, I didn\u2019t want to change.<\/p>\n
\u201c(Hitting) .300 means a lot to me. Am I going to end up with a .300 career batting average? As I get older, who knows? I know batting average has gone away. But to me if you hit .300 and you play every day, that means you\u2019re getting on base at least 250 times with hits and walks. That means you\u2019re doing everything you can to help your team.\u201d<\/p>\n
As his 37th birthday nears in September, Freeman has rebounded from a mediocre April (.742 OPS) with a strong May (.891). His bat speed remains well below average, but his underlying metrics, from expected batting average and slugging percentage to exit velocity and hard-hit percentage, are ahead of where they were last season. He is a master of the art of hitting \u2013 a lost art for many in today\u2019s game.<\/p>\n
Such is the focus on metrics, people occasionally lose sight of results. A hard-hit ball that yields an unfavorable outcome is often excused as poor luck. The reverse also is true, with a softly hit ball that finds a hole frequently dismissed as mere happenstance. But, as with anything in baseball, it\u2019s dangerous to speak in absolutes.<\/p>\n
Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said when a left-handed batter hits a back-door slider with two strikes over the shortstop\u2019s head, that\u2019s not luck, it\u2019s intent. The hitter refused to chase the pitch. He saw it deep. He got his bat to the ball.<\/p>\n
\u201cThat\u2019s hitting,\u201d Roberts said.<\/p>\n
Roberts cited another situation that requires a hitter to take a flexible approach \u2013 two on, two outs. At that point, he said, the goal of a hitter should not necessarily be to attain maximum exit velocity or pull the ball in the air.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou\u2019ve got to get a hit,\u201d Roberts said. \u201cYou need to hit the outfield grass. There\u2019s a skill to hitting the outfield grass. How will you do it if you don\u2019t practice it? Freddie practices getting hits. That\u2019s why he\u2019s going to get 3,000 hits.\u201d<\/p>\n
With two outs and runners on first and second, Freeman entered Monday with a career .353 batting average and .986 OPS. With two outs and runners on second and third, he was at .311 and .877. Both sets of numbers were well above the current league averages.<\/p>\n
Freeman is so skilled in the batter\u2019s box, it would be a shock if he ever stopped hitting successfully. Yet, he is aware decline is inevitable, creating another potential obstacle to 3,000 hits. And he said, somewhat jokingly, that family might be a reason older players regress.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019ve always thought Father Time takes you down,\u201d Freeman said. \u201cBut I don\u2019t know if it\u2019s Father Time. I think it\u2019s because you miss things with your family and your kids. Maybe that\u2019s the contributing factor to older guys not playing as good. One, you have four kids. You\u2019re tired all the time. That 98 looks a little bit faster when you\u2019re a little sleepy.\u201d<\/p>\n
\n<\/blockquote>\nHe is adamant he doesn\u2019t \u201cwant to be a lug out there,\u201d taking up a roster spot, dragging down his team. But he isn\u2019t close to that point yet. And even with London pulling at his heart, a recent conversation with his grandfather, Ed, struck a chord.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe was like, \u2018You\u2019re going to be the best dad, the best husband, for the next 50 years. You only have a few years of this left,\u2019\u201d Freeman said. \u201cThen I was like, that makes a whole lot of sense.\u201d<\/p>\n
Yet, during the course of our 10-minute conversation, Freeman kept going back and forth.<\/p>\n
His love for his children was publicly evident in 2024 when he held a tearful news conference detailing the struggles of his son Maximus, who was diagnosed with a rare autoimmune disease, Guillain-Barr\u00e9 syndrome, that left him temporarily paralyzed.<\/p>\n
Maximus recovered, and now Freeman\u2019s parental concerns are more mundane. Going months without seeing his oldest son Charlie\u2019s flag football games and practices. The possibility he will miss London\u2019s first steps. All the things that, as a new girl dad, leave him wistful.<\/p>\n
He loves baseball. He says it has given him everything. But London Rosemary Joy Freeman is leaving him torn about how long he wants to keep going.<\/p>\n
\u201cI feel good. My body feels good. We\u2019ll see,\u201d Freeman said. \u201cThere are so many factors in life that come along.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n