McCann brings veteran presence to 'exciting' young O's team

When James McCann found out he’d been traded from the Mets to the Orioles late on Dec. 21, it began a whirlwind holiday season for the 32-year-old catcher. He’s now spending the first week of 2023 by moving his family and preparing for a fresh start with his fourth team in six years.

In the two weeks since learning he was heading to Baltimore, McCann’s excitement has grown, especially as he’s found out more about the O’s. He didn’t face the club while playing for New York in 2022, but he has quickly acquired some intel from friends around baseball.

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“Guys around the league have reached out to me that saw them, especially down the stretch [in 2022], and talked about how talented of a roster the Orioles have and that we’re going to be a good team,” McCann said during an introductory Zoom call with reporters on Tuesday. “I hadn’t seen these guys in person, just because we didn’t play the Orioles. But seeing them in highlights, seeing what they accomplished down the stretch -- I think there’s a lot of things to be excited about in Baltimore.”

Even if that comes with less time on the field for McCann than he’s had in previous years.

Prior to appearing in only 61 games for the Mets in 2022 -- a season that featured two trips to the injured list -- McCann had played 105 or more games in six of his first seven full big league campaigns. The only exception was when he played 31 in the pandemic-shortened 60-game season in ‘20.

It’s less likely McCann exceeds the century mark in the upcoming season, as he’ll be serving as the Orioles’ backup catcher behind Adley Rutschman. McCann said the team discussed with him the possibility of getting some starts at first base and designated hitter, but Rutschman should handle a substantial amount of work behind the plate.

That doesn’t mean McCann can’t make a great impact on the team. He’ll get his opportunities to be in the lineup, and when he’s not, he’ll be available as a leader in a young clubhouse.

“I can’t control how many games I play, how many games I don’t play,” McCann said. “All I can control is the kind of teammate I am and what I do when my name does get called. I’ll be prepared for whatever comes my way. And, again, I’m looking forward to meeting Adley and hopefully helping him continue to develop.”

McCann, a nine-year big league veteran who was an All-Star while playing for the White Sox in 2019, is also hopeful he can prove his down offensive season in ‘22 was an outlier. He posted career lows in batting average (.195), slugging percentage (.282), OPS (.538) and OPS+ (55). Even when he wasn’t battling injuries, McCann may have been the victim of some bad luck.

Not only was McCann striking out at his lowest rate since 2017 (24.1 percent), but he had a hard-hit percentage of 40.8, which was the third-best mark of his career, per Statcast. He believes he fixed several bad habits he developed at the plate in ‘21 (his first year in New York), even if other numbers didn’t show it.

“Things really just didn’t bounce my way in ‘22, whether it was injuries or hitting balls right at people,” McCann said.

The more productive McCann can be at the plate, the better Baltimore’s lineup will be on the days when Rutschman is on the bench. McCann is confident he can get back to the offensive form he showed in 2019, when he posted a .789 OPS and slugged a career-high 18 homers in 118 games.

If for any reason he doesn’t, McCann knows his value to the Orioles can go beyond what shows up in the box scores.

“I’ve experienced failure at this level and I’ve found a way to succeed after. I was non-tendered after 2018, and I was an All-Star in 2019,” McCann said. “I’ve been there, I’ve experienced failure. And I do think that that’s part of one of my strengths as a player, is being able to communicate with other players that may be experiencing failure and being able to just kind of get them through those tough times.

“Because at the end of the day, you’re going to have a lot more tough times than you do good times, and that’s just the nature of this game.”

However, if the O’s build off their strong 2022 season and take another step forward in ‘23, McCann could have his fair share of good times in Baltimore soon -- which he’s already heard is a distinct possibility.