I'm not trying to rub it in. Most disliked the deal to some extent on day one.
Yes, he was rather consistent from 2017-2019, despite that word just not seeming appropriate for JBJ, but those 3 pretty even years were all major step downs from 2015-2016.
OPS+
119 '15
118 '16
89 '17
92 '18
89 '19
Now, had JBJ just given us a 90 OPS+ in '22, he'd have lasted the year, so it's not like there was no hope, at all. I had hopes, too. However, I was not all that excited about his 116 OPS+ in the short 2020 season. JBJ, as we all knew, has had several short stretches of hitting very well. I did not see that season as any sort of renewal of hopes. Obviously, the Brewers did.
After the horrific 2021 season and heading into his age 32 season, the "hope" was too long a shot to realistically think it would happen. I applaud the idea that our defense needed improving, but all D and no O OF'ers are a dime a dozen, and we paid dearly to get JBJ back. I'm not gloating that some of us were right about the deal "making no sense," but the only hope for that trade was always about Binelas and Hamilton.