Added for playoff prowess, George Springer’s decline lingers

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With nothing left to play for and last place in the American League East locked up for the first time since 2013, it is a sobering final home stand for the Blue Jays.

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But that doesn’t mean there isn’t work to be accomplished in what can be a week’s worth of exit interviews for players of whom much will be expected next season.

Some of those conversations have begun and will continue before the 2024 season comes to its merciful close on Sunday. Predictably (and prominently) included on that list is George Springer, the highest-paid player in franchise history and currently one of its most under-achieving.

Springer, who has been on an alarming decline for two seasons now, has had a lead role in the Jays’ untimely demise. But can he be a viable part of the solution?

“It’s been a weird up-and-down year for him, and (Springer) would be the first to tell you that,” Jays manager John Schneider said Monday prior to his team’s meek 4-1 loss to the Red Sox in a truly indifferent effort before a crowd of 22,254, the smallest of the season at the Rogers Centre. “It’s a big opportunity for him to attack the off-season and say: ‘What can I do to get me back to the player that I can be?’

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“He knows that. He gets that and we’re counting on that.”

There really isn’t any other choice, at this point. The Jays can’t just get rid of him and desperately need some return on an investment that once seemed so promisingly prudent.

When Springer signed that six-year, $150 million US contract in 2021, it was hailed as a key piece to fling open the much-hyped competitive window, a ray of sunshine that was going to bring so much playoff success north of the border.

Springer, after all, was a former World Series MVP with the Houston Astros and was brought here to be a post-season hero. Well, with his fourth season now just five games from being complete, the Jays have yet to win a playoff game — let alone a series — and have bottomed out here in 2024.

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Now as he continues to age, the Jays will hope to salvage something from the remaining riches to be paid their starting right fielder. The problems with this team run far deeper than just Springer, of course, but one can argue they start with the leadoff man.

Entering Monday’s contest at the Rogers Centre, in which he went 1-for-4, Springer was on track for career lows in a batting rack full of offensive categories. His batting average of .220 is a precipitous drop from the .258 in 2023, his previous low while on base percentage and slugging percentage are also the lowest of his career. The 19 home runs are also two below his previous worst in Toronto, the 21 he banged out last season.

None of this is a surprise, of course, as Springer’s struggles have been an ongoing narrative. But with so much focus on the long list of things the team needs to improve upon this winter, getting something out of a player so much was expected of would be a good place to start.

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“If the skills weren’t here I’d say ‘Okay, we’ve really got to dive into this,’ but he’s still showing he can do things at a high level,” Schneider said. “Whether it’s foot speed, bat speed, exit velo, all that kind of stuff, that’s all still there. I think when you get older, it’s just tougher to repeat it a little bit day in and day out.

“To me, it’s really the consistency that gets brought to light a little bit as players get older. You see flashes of (performance) but how do you get it consistent.”

So what’s the solution? Ultimately it will be on Springer to come to camp next spring not just prepared to halt the decline but reverse it, even as he continues to age. Springer turned 35 last week and it was always anticipated that the later years in his blockbuster deal would be the leanest.

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“I think with (Springer) and a lot of guys, (it’s) looking ahead to try to keep evolving with the game,” Schneider said of the adjustment mindset required. “We’re kind of at that point (where it’s) how do you adjust to how the game is being played, what pitches are being thrown. Those are conversations we’ve had for the last couple of weeks and hopefully that pays off.”

In Springer’s case, especially. The man brought here to be Mr. October isn’t supposed to be a part of a team that exits September so meekly.

GAME ON

Rather presciently, prior to the game, Schneider hinted at the challenges these meaningless games have on starting pitchers. Monday was a struggle from the outset for Jays righty Chris Bassitt, who lasted just 4.1 innings and walked a career-high seven Red Sox batters while striking out just two. “He couldn’t really find the zone with anything,” Schneider said of Bassitt. “Weird night for him.” … The Jays didn’t have much going on at the plate in the early going with the first hit off of Boston starter Tanner Houck coming via an Ernie Clement single in the fifth .. The play-out-the-string vibes continue as the Jays (73-84) dropped their fourth in a row and sixth of their past seven … After a close call at first in the ninth, the recent hot streak of Vlad Guerrero Jr. was cooled on an 0-for-4 night … The Jays did manage their lone run in the final inning however, thanks to an RBI single from Spencer Horwitz … The Jays are now 20-30 against AL East opponents.

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