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Detroit Tigers' Mark Canha focuses on what helped him to 1,000 games amid two-month slump
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- Detroit Tigers' Mark Canha focuses on what helped him to 1,000 games amid two-month slump
MINNEAPOLIS — Detroit Tigers veteran Mark Canha reached the 1,000-game milestone Saturday against the Los Angeles Angels . He is getting close to 10 years of MLB service time, but in the meantime, he's proud of himself for achieving the millennium mark.
Canha has played in 1,002 games across his 10-year MLB career, hitting .248 along the way. The 35-year-old resurrected his career in 2018 — his age-29 season — by swinging less to improve his on-base percentage.
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He has been an everyday player ever since.
"It means I did it," Canha said before Wednesday's game against the Minnesota Twins at Target Field. "It means I had a good career. Not a lot of people get to play 1,000 games, so I did something right for a lot of years. That's something I'll always be proud of."
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Detroit Tigers designated hitter Mark Canha leads off of first base against the Atlanta Braves during the first inning at Truist Park in Atlanta on Monday, June 17, 2024.
Canha, a seventh-round pick in the 2010 draft, never thought about 1,000 games as a young player. He simply focused on working hard every day.
Turns out, the hard work paid off for Canha.
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"I don't think you can think about the future or the past," Canha said. "I think you have to be present. I showed up to the field on a mission to accomplish something, and I had a goal in sight every day, and I built bricks, one on top of the other, and I think I went about it the right way. I still do."
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In his 10th season, Canha is hitting .224 with six home runs, 35 walks and 62 strikeouts in 78 games with the Tigers . His .331 on-base percentage is his worst since 2018, and his .669 OPS is his worst since 2017.
The Tigers — led by president of baseball operations Scott Harris — acquired Canha in a trade with the Milwaukee Brewers in November 2023 , then exercised his $11.5 million club option for the 2024 season. He represented the only significant addition to the offense, but Harris believed Canha would help the young hitters develop in a lead-by-example role.
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Since May 1, Canha is hitting .194 with a .527 OPS in 49 games.
"I've gone through it before," said Canha, who hit .278 with a .922 OPS in his first 29 games. "It's not the first slump I've been through, and it won't be the last. Hopefully, it won't be the last. It happens to the best of us. It's not fun to go through, but I still enjoy the process. I enjoy showing up every day and working on something. It's a challenge, and it's a fun challenge."
Detroit Tigers first base Mark Canha (21) bats a sacrifice fly against Washington Nationals during the seventh inning at Comerica Park in Detroit on Thursday, June 13, 2024.
Manager A.J. Hinch diagnosed Canha's struggles, explaining the rhythm and timing of his swing mechanics have been disrupted. His 46.9% ground-ball rate for the entire season is the highest of his career.
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He has a 48.9% ground-ball rate since May 1.
It doesn't help that other Tigers, aside from Riley Greene , have struggled around him.
"I think the more that our team has struggled offensively, the more a lot of these guys are trying to make up for it, even subconsciously, maybe they won't amid it," Hinch said. "He's swung a little bit more than he normally does, and he's put in the ball in play on the ground quite a bit. Those are tough things to correct on the fly when you're trying to do your best."
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To find a fix, Canha is doing what he's always done.
He's putting in the work.
Canha, who transitioned from outfielder/designated hitter to everyday first baseman upon Spencer Torkelson's June 3 demotion to Triple-A Toledo , wasn't in the starting lineup for Wednesday's game against the Twins, but he walked into the visitor's clubhouse drenched in sweat after swinging in the batting cage. Sure enough, he proceeded to take more swings in pregame warmups on the field.
"I've always worked really hard," Canha said. "That's how I handle things. That's what I've always done, so I'm not going to stop until I'm ready to. It's still fun to come to the ballpark every day, and I think that's how you have to go about it. If there's anything I can impart on these young guys, it's work your ass off with a goal in mind."
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The first step in Canha's process to fix the problem is answering this question: What is the problem? The first step happens to be the hardest part of the process.
But Canha keeps working in search of an answer.
"It's a hard time to hit," Canha said. "It's not easy. If you have one little flaw that you're not addressing, and that's happening to me right now, and it just piles, one on top of the other. I made what I think are adjustments, but they're probably just compensations, not really addressing the real problem. I'm trying to get to the root of the problem."
Contact Evan Petzold at epetzold@freepress.com or follow him @EvanPetzold .
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This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Detroit Tigers' Mark Canha focuses on what helped him to 1,000 games
