Blue Jays: 2017 Player of the Year award goes to….

The Toronto Blue Jays player of the year in 2017 is a two-horse race between a former MVP and a player nobody would have ever predicted to be mentioned in this sentence at the beginning of the season.

The Toronto Blue Jays Player of the Year for 2017 has to go to the switch-hitting first baseman Justin Smoak. The slugger has been Mr. Consistency since the season commenced in April and anchoring the Blue Jays offense when many of the regulars spent time on the disabled list.

Entering the final day of the season Smoak is slashing .270/.358/.534 with 38 round trippers to lead the team. Smoak is the longest of dark horses for this honour as many including myself were ready to anoint Rowdy Tellez as his replacement in spring training.

Smoak represented the Jays at the mid-summer classic while breaking the franchise record for the most homers by a switch hitter. He also looks like the bargain of the century earning a modest $4.125 million this season and next.

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The late-season offensive surge by Josh Donaldson nearly upended Smoak for the top spot but we had to go with the overall body of work over the course of 126 games.

Donaldson had a September for the ages dramatically improving his sub-par numbers he had in an injury-riddled first half. The third baseman is batting .270/.388/.563 with 30 home runs on the season.

The former MVP is entering his final year of arbitration eligibility as the Jays lean on him and Smoak to lead the Jays out of the AL East basement in 2018.

There were not many other players even close to Smoak or Donaldson in the running but honourable mentions could go to Kendrys Morales and his 28 homers as well as Kevin Pillar and his 15/15 season with 16 home runs and 15 swipes if there were such a thing.

Next: Blue Jays: 2017 Pitcher of the Year award goes to…

Congratulations to “Smoakie” on being the Jays Journal Toronto Blue Jays Player of the Year in 2017.