With little imagination or direction from their editors, most Chicago sportswriters have defaulted to the return of Javy Baez to Wrigley stories. It’s forced a lot of people to rethink their initial love for the guy that has floundered badly since leaving the Cubs.

Despite what some fans think, Javy isn’t the first or last player to leave (any) town, presumably for greener pastures only to stink up the joint. I’m not going to cite any of his numbers as you can look them up.

I haven’t told fans how they should root or boo in years and I’m definitely not going to start now. As to Baez and his return to Wrigley, I’ve heard that some will boo him, and others will cheer during the Cubs video highlight. Personally, I would cheer loudly because he’s the only position player on the field that has anything to do with bringing the Cubs a championship. He also brought a lot of joy to Cub fans and earned the respect of non-Cub fans for his hustle, flash and style of play. Not every Cubs great has done that.

Don’t bristle at the term, Cubs great. I’m not suggesting he is or was a great player, but rather a Cubs great. There is a difference that most can figure out.

I’ve already discussed his fall since earning the big bucks and playing elsewhere and haven’t figured out the why’s or where’s. It’s just very hard to believe that only a couple of years ago the city of Chicago had two of the more promising and exciting young shortstops in the game in Baez and Tim Anderson. That both have fallen off the map so dramatically may only be coincidental, but it’s noteworthy.

Their styles of play were different, but the two should have been key parts of future success and at the time nobody wrote about the coincidental success of two middle infielders since 1959. The teams have had simultaneous successful middle infielders over the decades, but nothing like ’59 when the Sox second baseman, Nellie Fox was the AL MVP and the Cubs shortstop, Ernie Banks was the NL MVP. Their styles were even more disparate than the current examples and they were equally beloved.

Back to booing the enemy, Baez of the hated Tigers. If fans are carrying a grudge for the Tigers because they defeated the Cubs in multiple World Series, fine. Personally, I don’t hate this brand of Tigers-especially since they come to town with a 61-64 record. They’re one of those sub .500 teams that the Cubs should beat-despite the fact the Cubs are only 61-64. Does anyone think the Tigers are afraid of the mighty Cubs?

Is it possible for some fans to celebrate his return as a means of showing their gratitude and then move on? I think so as adults have the ability to compartmentalize-we do it all the time. And for those all in on Pete Crow-Armstrong, were it not for the Cubs and Javy to come to an agreement, we’d never be treated to the PCA experience.

What’s funny is that none of the Cubs players will take the video tribute personally. First of all, Baez is liked by guys in the league and realize they’ll be playing for multiple teams and will be the subject of future tributes (unless they are miserable tools). And if anyone is really bothered there’s an easy solution-perform better and earn your money. Currently, the Cubs have a ton of guys not living up to their contracts maybe not as badly as Javy, but the records don’t like. Shakira, Shakira.

Editor’s note: I’ve been a fan of Javy since I first saw him play for the Peoria Chiefs in 2013 when he blasted two homers in Beloit. I couldn’t access those photos for this post though. I followed him to Iowa and later Chicago. He entertained me with his enthusiasm and unique brand of fielding and baserunning. More than a few times, his play aggravated the heck out of me, but I still liked him. Lots of players that I like make stupid mistakes on the field but I can still cheer them on.

I’m sure he’d prefer to hear more cheers than jeers, but I suspect both will fuel him for a day or so. In the end, it’s a battle of two teams going nowhere fast. I know that if one were to do a little digging, you might find another returning or two making visits this week.