After struggling with oblique and quad injuries for much of spring training and the regular season, Toronto Blue Jays outfielder George Springer finally returned a few days ago.
Day game after a night game and George Springer is back in the #BlueJays lineup and playing CF again. Pretty good sign that he's 100%.
— Mitch Bannon (@MitchBannon) June 26, 2021
The Jays signed him over the offseason to a six-year, $150 million contract, so they had to exercise patience.
Of course, he has only played in 10 games this season, so he is clearly rusty.
As of Wednesday afternoon, he is hitting 194/.326/.444 with three home runs in 44 plate appearances.
After the season’s first three months, it’s fair to wonder: What does Springer represent to the Blue Jays?
What is his current role with the franchise?
A Veteran Leader
Perhaps the Blue Jays spent so much money on Springer for him to be the team’s best player and hitter for as long it would take Vladimir Guerrero Jr. and Bo Bichette to fully break out.
The funny thing is that both are showing they are elite players in 2021, especially Guerrero Jr.
Since Vladdy broke out in a big way and is already the Blue Jays’ best player, the 31-year old Springer will be expected to contribute something invaluable for a young, up-and-coming organization: experience and leadership.
Springer was one of the best players on one of the best teams of the last few years: the Houston Astros.
He has two World Series under his belt, and one of them resulted in a victory.
He has hit his fair share of crucial homers in the postseason, and he knows what it takes to take to produce in October.
. @astros' George Springer with his go-ahead home run in the 11th
The fans here at MMP are still with y'all! #EarnHistory #WorldSeries pic.twitter.com/mgvDQlK3tX
— Armando Reveron (@aj_reveron) October 26, 2017
Those are traits that the Blue Jays surely value.
The Middle-Of-The-Order Producer
With Houston, Springer was more like a table-setter.
Hitting first most of the times, Springer helped set the tone for the Astros offense and he did a tremendous job for years.
In Toronto, however, he is expected to be more like a middle-of-the-order producer.
He has the ability to thrive in the role.
He has hit .269/.360/.491 with 177 home runs in his career, and he should have a few more seasons of high-end performance in him.
He hits the ball hard, he knows how to get a walk if the pitcher doesn’t offer anything to hit, and he has ample power to take advantage if they do.
Batting behind the likes of Bichette, Guerrero Jr., Teoscar Hernandez, and Marcus Semien, he should be, if healthy, one of the leaders in RBI in the second half.
The Hope For A Potential Postseason Run
As of now, Toronto is 41-37.
That’s good enough for third place in the American League East.
They are currently in third place, 7.5 games behind the leaders, the Boston Red Sox.
A Wild Card berth is well within reach, and they could still surprise more than a few people and win the division.
Most of those victories were achieved without Springer in the lineup.
Now that he is healthy and ready to contribute, it shouldn’t surprise anyone if the Jays are one of the best teams in the second half, especially if they manage to find pitching help.
The Jays’ front office hopes that Springer can be the missing piece in a potential postseason run.
And he has the talent to be just that.
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