Hao-Yu Lee could be real piece for Tigers: "I can play up here"

The chant typically starts in the stands behind the Tigers' dugout, when a certain someone is at the plate: "How! You! ... Doinnnnn!?" Hao-Yu Lee is doing just fine.

"He’s just in on every at-bat," said A.J. Hinch. "Not every at-bat is going to end in a hit or a walk, but there’s a competitiveness to Hao-Yu Lee that I admire. He’s in the at-bat. I think he knows he belongs."

Well, he knows now. At the start of the season, Lee wasn't so sure. He was summoned to the majors in April after recovering from an oblique injury he suffered in spring training and barely hit his weight. He looked overmatched against big-league pitching. He lasted a month and a half before being sent down on the second day of June with a .205 average and a .579 OPS.

"Originally when I got called up, I thought I wasn’t ready yet," Lee said Tuesday after another productive night at the plate in the Tigers' loss to the Nationals. "I had just been hurt and coming back — I mean, that’s just an excuse — I just thought everyone was better than me when I got called up. After I got sent down, A.J. gave me some confidence, so when I got back, it just feels like, yeah, I can stay here, I can play up here. It’s not like everybody is better than me. I’m better, too."

Lee was demoted to make way for Gleyber Torres, who was returning to the lineup after missing Detroit's miserable month of May with an oblique injury of his own. For Lee, it was a chance to exhale. The season had come at him quickly, from the injury in March, to a brief rehab stint in Lakeland, to a rather sudden call to the majors.

Before Lee traveled back to Toledo, Hinch told him in the manager's office in Tampa, "It’s not because you’re not good enough. It’s just, we need a spot."

Less than two weeks later Lee was back. And with a vengeance. He picked up a handful of hits during a series in Houston and caught the eye of Jose Altuve, a similarly small, right-handed hitting second baseman who complimented Lee's swing. That was an important boost for Lee; Altuve is on his way to the Hall of Fame. He got another shot of confidence a week later against the Yankees when Lee singled off Gerrit Cole. It was a liner into right, on a slider at the top of the zone.

That, says Lee, is when he realized he could succeed against the best pitchers in the world: "I was just like, damn, I just hit Gerrit Cole — I can hit anybody. He’s been a Cy Young before and I still hit him."

Since June 1st, which includes the final game of his first stint in the majors, Lee's hitting .292 with an .827 OPS. His average ranks in the top 10 in the American League over that stretch -- and first on the Tigers -- among hitters with at least 250 plate appearances. His swing is geared to go the other way. Only two AL hitters this season (min. 350 plate appearances) have a higher rate of opposite field contact than Lee: Torres and Steven Kwan.

“He hits the ball hard and he makes really good decisions on what to swing at,” said Hinch. “When I say that, it doesn't mean he never chases, like every hitter chases. But I think as he's meticulously worked on zone control, he's always hit the ball really hard."

Lee's batted ball data isn't exceptional. He's vulnerable to pitches up and away given his tendency to fly open during his swing. But he's got a knack for spraying line drives that's almost reminiscent of four-time All-Star Dustin Pedroia, the compact right-handed hitting second baseman for the Red Sox who used a hitting stride that leaked toward the third base line and looked a bit like Lee's. It's not conventional, but it can work.

Lee's surge at the plate owes not only to more confidence, but a better hitting plan. Since rejoining the Tigers, "I settled down a little bit and (started) being patient," he said. "That helped me a lot because when I (first) got called up, I was just trying to hit the fastball and guessing, so I was chasing a lot. Now I’m focused on the pitch that I want."

Like last Friday against the White Sox. With one on and the Tigers trailing by two in the 8th, Lee got a 97 mph fastball above the zone and drove it over the right field fence to complete Detroit's rally from an 8-2 deficit in an 11-8 win. The Saturday prior against the Rockies, he worked a 12-pitch at-bat in the 8th that ended in a triple off the right field wall that scored two and sealed the Tigers' 11-7 win.

Indeed, Lee's season has been full of big hits, including a tie-breaking three-run homer in the 8th inning at Wrigley Field in July and a pinch-hit go-ahead single in extra innings against the Giants back in August. He's done equal damage against righties and lefties. This feels significant for a team that's relied on too many platoons at too many positions, for too many seasons. Lee might actually be platoon-proof.

In a lost season for the Tigers, Lee's growth has been a win. Kevin McGonigle, Max Clark, Dillon Dingler and Riley Greene are clearly part of Detroit's position-playing core. Could Lee join them? The 23-year-old is at least hitting his way into the conversation.

"His transition wasn’t perfect at the beginning, but we fought through it, we sent him back down, he comes back and how he’s really emerging as a contributor," said Hinch. "I don't know to what extent. Is he gonna be a starter? Is he gonna be a platoon? Is he gonna come off the bench? But there’s something there to work with."

The biggest question is in the field, where Lee's defense has a ways to go. He knows it. He's been worth minus-5 outs above average at second and minus-6 outs above average at third this season. Both his range and his arm rank toward the bottom of the league. But the Tigers will have an opening at second base next season with the departure of Torres as a free agent, and third base remains a question mark.

His bat will put him in the mix at both positions. An improved glove could earn him an everyday role, especially if the Tigers move on from Spencer Torkelson and shift Colt Keith back to first. There's a lot to be determined this winter. Asked if he's thought at all about his role next season, Lee said with a smile, "That’s too far (ahead)."

"I mean, for sure I want to be an everyday player, but I can’t choose that. So I’ll just work as hard as I can in the offseason to make adjustments and get better on my defense. It’s not good (right now)," he said. "I need to work as hard as I can to get better, so I can get a spot. I can’t just hit. I need defense. I need to help the pitcher and not just, like, the pitcher throws the ball, the ball is hit to me, and everybody is nervous. I don’t want that. I know I can get better."

Meanwhile, Lee's still getting better with the bat. His major-league maturation has only just begun. New challenges await in a game of adjustments. Slumps loom. Lee just broke out of one, responding to a 15-game stretch where he hit .143 by hitting .333 in his last 11 games. These are all encouraging signs.

After Lee singled and drew two walks on Tuesday, Hinch reflected on his development this year and said, "He does a lot of things at the plate that you like. He knows the pitches to swing at. He is in every at-bat, and he gives himself a chance."

That's a strong place to start for a rookie. We'll see what his future holds, but Lee is very much a part of it in Detroit.