Without George Springer, the Offseason is a Bust: Springer is Critical for the Jays

George Springer is without question the best position player available on the free agent market this offseason. Despite a slight down year offensively, Springer is a huge offensive threat with a ton of pop in his bat, and he produces significant defensive value as well. He has been a clear target for Toronto, and if they can’t land him, the front office might as well consider this offseason to be a failure.

The Jays have a strong outfield already with Hernandez, Gurriel, and Grichuk, but two main issues arise with those names. Grichuk in center field is a terrible fit, as he produced -8 defensive runs saved (DRS) in 2020. He is a solid defender when making routine plays, but is unable to convert on plays with a higher degree of difficulty, and doesn’t have the range of a typical center fielder. Gurriel has also caused issues and concerns for the team despite his strong performance. He is one of the team’s better bats, and was even a gold glove nominee this past season, but what use is a great player when he can’t stay on the field? Aaron Judge might’ve had an MVP or two under his belt if he could’ve stayed healthy, but he only plays in half the games each season.

Heading into the offseason GM Ross Atkins specifically said that they would look for a “high impact” player, and Springer perfectly fits the description. The three time all-star has two silver sluggers to his name, and is only a year removed from a 39 home run campaign. Springer finished 2020 with a .265/.359/.540 slash line along with 14 home runs and 32 RBI in 189 ABs. In 2019 he hit for a wicked slash line of .292/.383/.591 with 39 bombs and 96 RBI in 479 ABs, leading him to a seventh place MVP finish. However, it isn’t yet known whether or not the Astros were still taking advantage of illegal resources at that point, which could affect his market value.

Obviously Springer would be a fantastic addition to the Blue Jays lineup, but that isn’t actually the main benefit and motive. One of the major concerns in the past season for Toronto was their poor defense, having finished with only two players with positive DRS figures (McGuire and Espinal). In 2020 as a center fielder Springer put up 6 DRS, significantly better than Grichuk’s -8. Springer has long been a great defensive asset, having put up 12 DRS in 2019 as well. His best position statistically is center field, which is a desperate need for the Jays, and not only would it allow the team to fill a huge need, but it would grant the team a significant trade asset.

With Springer in center field, Grichuk would need to shift to one of the corners, leaving Hernandez, Gurriel and himself fighting for two remaining outfield spots. Hernandez broke out over the past season, making him someone the team highly values. Also going for him is his great injury track record, and his plus arm. He clearly felt very comfortable in right, and after a couple great highlight reel plays, it only makes sense to leave him there. This narrows it to Grichuk and Gurriel fighting for the final spot in left.

As previously said, what use is a great player when he can’t stay on the field? Gurriel is a great player, but is not a great fit for a team ready to contend. Fortunately he is a proven star coming off a season in which he was a gold glove nominee, and he is going into his age 27 season with four more years of team control, and a team friendly contract for three of those four years. Despite his injury history, he holds significant trade value, and he might just be the piece to go. The significance to this is the recent interest in Gurriel from Cleveland, who views Toronto as a potential destination for MVP caliber shortstop Francisco Lindor.

Whether the Jays were to acquire Lindor or not, signing Springer should remain their top priority. Not only does the former world series MVP bring a huge bat and plus defensive skills to the team, but he brings along championship experience, veteran leadership, and opens up the ability to trade for greater assets, whether it be Lindor, Snell, Musgrove, or anyone else. This signing would not only fix the needs in the outfield, but allows us to fix other significant needs as well. Without Springer the Jays would likely either rely on Grichuk yet again — which has already proven problematic — or they would turn to a plan B, such as Jackie Bradley Jr. Bradley Jr. brings the elite defense that the team ever so badly needs, but his inability to get on base could cause severe problems for a team who already struggles to get the ball rolling offensively.

Going into his age 31 season, Springer is a great fit for the team not just in 2021, but in future years too. He perfectly fits the team timeline, and he would also come at a reasonable cost (projected 5 years, $125 million). With how ideal a fit he is, and the huge ripple effect he causes through the team, he is the absolute key to winning the offseason for Toronto, and they might even be better off signing him then Bauer.

In the early points of the offseason the Jays looked like the clear front runners in the Springer race, but ever since Steve Cohen purchased the Mets, many marquee free agents have become extremely interested in joining them, especially Springer, who grew up and lives less than two hours from the stadium. Currently they appear to be the front runner for Springer, but the Jays are supposedly the other team still in the race. With the position the Jays presently sit in, this could be the career defining offseason for Atkins and Shapiro, and Springer is too important a player to pass up on. If they can’t bring Springer to Toronto for 2021, then one could easily argue that this offseason is a flop, because he is the key to the success that this franchise will hold for years to come.