Mike Cameron to son Daz: 'Keep it simple'

Like a lot of parents, former Major League All-Star Mike Cameron has spent a lot of time with his kids during the coronavirus pandemic, and they’re having life conversations. Unlike a lot of parents, however, Cameron is the parent of a Tigers outfield prospect who’s trying to work his way to the big leagues.

Dad’s message to Daz Cameron? Use the extra time to your advantage, but keep it simple.

“He wants to work every day, 24/7, because he has access to a cage and a facility all times of the night, going down there and start tinkering with everything,” Mike Cameron told Jim Duquette and Mike Ferrin on MLB Network Radio on Wednesday morning. “I swear to you guys, he came home and he started talking about, ‘I'm going to do this, I'm going to do that.’ And I said, ‘You had like a week to go in Spring Training and you're coming back talking about changing something already.’ I'm just like, ‘Come on, man.’

“Then I had to actually sit him down and I pulled out every old video I could of myself and everyone else. I said, ‘Son, look, there's a lot of information, but just keep it as simple as you possibly can. You've got a good swing. Let it be. Leave it alone. It's mental with you. How you are going to continue to develop mentally is going to be the tell-all of your success. Physically, you've already done it. Now it's just mentally, you have to be able to do it and you have to be able to impact your game in that manner, and that would allow you to become a big league baseball player. That's the difference.’”

Daz Cameron was in big league camp this Spring Training before being optioned to Triple-A Toledo on March 10. He went 3-for-13 with a double, two walks and four strikeouts in seven games. It marked Cameron’s second consecutive year in big league camp, having been a breakout player in Spring Training in 2019 as a non-roster invite.

After climbing three Minor League levels in 2018, his first full season in the Tigers farm system following his arrival from the Astros in the Justin Verlander trade, the younger Cameron spent all of last season at Toledo. He batted .214 with 22 doubles, six triples, 13 home runs, 43 RBIs, 17 stolen bases and a .707 OPS. His 62 walks contributed to a .330 on-base percentage, but he also struck out 152 times in 120 games.

Daz Cameron ranks No. 7 on the Tigers' Top 30 Prospects list, per MLB Pipeline. He’s the second-highest-ranked outfielder on the list behind Riley Greene. His father has been preaching patience with him.

“I think in his case, in this day and age with the social media and so much attention on the prospects in the game, if these guys don't do well by a certain age, they say they've failed or they're not prospects anymore,” Mike Cameron said. “Look, I didn't get a chance to play big league baseball every day until I was 25, I think. These guys are making it to the big leagues at 20 now.

“I just keep reminding him, he's so worried about it. He's like, ‘I'm 23.’ I'm like, ‘Dude, you're 23. You were 22 in Triple-A. You struggled. Don't worry about that. It doesn't matter when you get there. It's how long you can stay there that's going to be the thing.’ Obviously, it does become really good to get there early, because it just allows you so much time to be able to grow in the game and everything else. But I just told him, ‘You've been around a big league camp now, with you playing every day, to understand what's actually taking place. So I need for you to start really paying attention to what's going on, slow everything down, see what's going on.’”

One of the things Cameron told his son to pay attention to going into camp was Miguel Cabrera.

“You've got one of the greatest right-handed hitters to ever play the game on your team,” Cameron told his son. “You had a chance to be around some of those guys last year. It's different than when you were 12 and just going to get bubble gum out of [the clubhouse] and running and shagging or whatever. Now, this is your job in the big league clubhouse, so start paying attention to what's transpiring around you. They don't have many veterans over there, but you do have one of the greatest right-handed hitters in the game over there. So start paying attention to everything.”