Here's some good news for the Blue Jays, their fans and people with George Springer on their fantasy baseball teams. Jays manager Charlie Montoyo told reporters Monday that Springer is set to begin a rehab assignment with Triple-A Buffalo (which is actually playing in Trenton, New Jersey, with the Jays set up in Buffalo), via Shi Davidi of Sportsnet. There's no word on how long the stint will take, but the plan is for him to play five innings in the outfield and then see how he progresses.
Quad and oblique injuries have limited Springer to just four games this season. In those four games, he went 3 for 15 with two homers.
Springer at full health is a game-changer for an already-exciting Blue Jays offense. In 2019-20 combined, he hit .284/.376/.576 (148 OPS+) with 53 homers, 128 RBI and 133 runs in 173 games.
Previously, Springer spent his entire career with the Astros, but he signed a six-year, $150 million deal with the Blue Jays this past offseason.
The Blue Jays have gotten good production from Randal Grichuk and Teoscar Hernandez, but overall they have three positions that haven't produced well on the whole this season:
Jays' center fielders have hit .234/.295/.417Jays' left fielders have hit .256/.281/.374Jays' designated hitters have hit .241/.312/.417However it shakes out, getting Springer back provides a big boost, assuming he can stay on the field and produce like he's done throughout his career.
The Blue Jays entered Monday at 33-30, 7 1/2 games out in the AL East. We shouldn't be wild card watching yet, but for those interested they are three back of the second wild card. This is to say they are definitely contenders despite barely having had their shiny new offseason toy in the lineup. That seems likely to change soon.
