Blue Jays: The SS standard, and our expectations of Goins

Ryan Goins is one of the most divisive players the Blue Jays have had in the last number of years, with half of the fan base adoring his contributions, while the other half wants to see him cut from the roster. This split in the fan base made me wonder how his performance has compared to other shortstops in recent Blue Jays’ memory.

The Blue Jays haven’t had a lot of luck with keeping Troy Tulowitzki on the field during his tenure in Toronto, and as a result the team has had to lean on Ryan Goins a great deal. Depending on who you ask, the five year veteran of the team has either been a tremendous asset for the club, or an enormous detriment. The opinions are divided, and if you don’t believe me just search the man’s name on Twitter.

Seeing the love-hate relationship that Blue Jays’ fans have with the utility infielder made me wonder, not only why it’s that way, but also how his performance stacks up against shortstops of the past. I’ve been following the team pretty religiously since childhood, and I’ll admit that I was surprised by a few of the names on this list. Not because I didn’t remember them, but because a few of them I didn’t recall getting as much playing time as they did.

Anyway, it’s very interesting to take a look at how the “captains of the infield” have fared (I only went as far back as 2000), and with that knowledge, is it fair that Goins faces so much criticism? Let’s have a look.

The Start of the Century

2000-01- Alex Gonzalez

The Blue Jays drafted Alex Gonzalez in 1991 and he became their primary shortstop in 1995, holding the job until he left for the Chicago Cubs in 2002. He was definitely a solid shortstop throughout his time with the Blue Jays, and he was pretty solid in 2000-01. He hit .252 and .253, and also added some decent pop, hitting 32 home runs and 145 RBI in those two seasons.

Those were two of his better seasons with the Blue Jays, but unfortunately he left town just as he was finding his power stroke, a nice feature from the shortstop position, especially in the era. While he never quite lived up to the billing the Blue Jays had for him as a youngster, he was one of the better shortstops of the last 20 years. Still, he earned just 0.7 bWAR in 2000, and 1.9 in 2001.

2002- Chris Woodward/Felipe Lopez

The Jays relied on a combination of Chris Woodward and Felipe Lopez in 2002, and it wasn’t one of the stronger years at the position. Woodward played in 90 games and had one of the better seasons of his career, hitting .276/.330/.468 with 13 home runs and 45 RBI. He played all over the diamond, but was one of the primary options at shortstop, earning a career high of 2.3 bWAR.

The power numbers were both career highs, and the batting average was one of the better years of his career, but still it was a transition year that allowed for that much opportunity for the career utility infielder. Lopez played in 85 games and hit .227/.287/.387 as a 22 year old. He mostly struggled throughout his young career before he became an All-Star in 2005, but unfortunately he was with the Cincinnati Reds by then.

The failed Adams experiment

2006- Adams/John McDonald

Adams was back as the starter to begin the 2006 season, but his regression started as a sophomore, and it lead to more games played by fan favourite John McDonald. Adams played in 90 games, and McDonald appeared in 104. McDonald was an outstanding defender, but hit just .223, and finished with a -0.1 WAR.

2007- Adams/McDonald/Royce Clayton

The Blue Jays brought in veteran Royce Clayton and he played in just 69 games before getting traded to Boston to finish out his career. Adams played in just 27 games in 2007, but didn’t get any playing time at shortstop.

McDonald played in a career high 123 games and hit .251/.279/.333, providing highlight reel defence and a serviceable contribution at the plate, finishing with 2.4 WAR that season.

2008- David Eckstein/McDonald

The Blue Jays went back to the well to bring in another veteran in 2008, and signed David Eckstein, a veteran of the Angels’ organization. He played in 76 games for the Blue Jays before they shipped him to the Diamondbacks. He was very serviceable (0.2 WAR) with the Blue Jays and spent a fair amount of time at the top of the lineup, but wasn’t in town for very long.

McDonald played in 84 games in 2008, but hit just .210 and struggled to reproduce the numbers he had the year before. Marco Scutaro more or less moved to short on a full time basis after Eckstein’s departure.

2009- Marco Scutaro

Scutaro was back as the shortstop and leadoff hitter of the team, and was .282/.379/.409 with 12 home runs and 60 RBI. Unfortunately he signed with the Red Sox at the end of the season, and eventually had more great years with the Giants before retiring in 2014. His 2009 season was arguably the best the Blue Jays have received from the position in the last twenty years, as he earned 5.4 bWAR after posting a mark of 4.5 the previous year. .

Alex Gonzalez 2.0?

2010- Alex Gonzalez

The Blue Jays must have missed having Alex Gonzalez in their lineup at shortstop, so they signed a second player by the same name. The latter Gonzalez had an unexpected breakout in 2010, finding a power stroke he’d never displayed at the big league level. He hit 17 home runs in 85 games before he traded to the Atlanta Braves.

He was a solid addition and ultimately parlayed into the Blue Jays getting Yunel Escobar, which is a rock solid return for a player signed to a one year deal. He did earn an astonishing 3.5 bWAR in his short 85 game stint, so I guess I can see why the Braves were interested.

2011-12- Yunel Escobar

Escobar was traded from the Braves, mostly because of reported attitude issues. Other than the “eye black” incident, he wasn’t a big issue for the Blue Jays by any means. He was a ready presence on both sides of the ball, and spent a lot of time at the top of the lineup, mostly because of a lack of a more appropriate option.

He was excellent in 2011 hitting .290/.369/.413, but dropped down to .253 the following year. He was largely underrated during his time in Toronto, earning 4.7 bWAR in 2011 before following up with 2.9 in 2012. Not bad for a guy they got for a half season of Alex Gonzalez.

2013-14- Jose Reyes

After 2.5 seasons of Escobar at the helm, the Blue Jays pulled the trigger on the infamous deal with the Marlins, and thus the Jose Reyes era started in Toronto. He played very well and appeared to be the solution at the top of the lineup, but his season finished prematurely after a severe ankle injury limited him to just 93 games. He did hit .296, and then followed up with a .287 season with 30 stolen bases in 2014. He earned 2.6 bWAR in 2013, and 3.2 during the following season.

Of course, his defence was another story, which is what ultimately lead to the Blue Jays looking to make a move at the position.

And to the present…

2015- Jose Reyes/Troy Tulowitzki

As most of us remember, this was the biggest shift at the position, and the transition from pretenders to contenders for the Blue Jays. Tulowitzki’s acquisition provided a tremendous boost to the club, even if his performance on the offensive side of the ball wasn’t anything to write home about.

His biggest contribution was shoring up the defence in the middle infield, teaming up with Ryan Goins (who was playing second base to a WAR of 2.7), to form one of the best defensive combinations in the game at the keystone. His addition also came alongside David Price‘s, and energized the team and fan base on their way to a historic run down the stretch, and winning the AL East. That said, Tulowitzki hit just .239/.317/.380 in his 41 games.

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2016- Tulowitzki/Goins

Tulowitzki returned for his first full season with the club to hit .254/.318/.443 with 24 home runs and 79 RBI in 131 games. His performance was good enough to earn him 3.3 bWAR, and to justify his contract as a pricy veteran.

While he wasn’t the MVP contender that he had been many times in a Colorado Rockies uniform, he was a solid member of the every day lineup, and the Blue Jays can only hope for that kind of performance from Tulo over the final three years of his contract.

2017- Tulowitzki/Goins

And then came this season. Tulowitzki was hurt twice, first with a hamstring issue, and then with the season ending ankle injury. He only played in 66 games on the season, and didn’t look particularly healthy even when he did make it on the field.

As a result, Ryan Goins received a nearly full time gig, and along with Darwin Barney they handled the majority of reps in the middle infield, also covering for the injured Devon Travis. Goins slashed .237/.286/.356 with 9 home runs, 62 RBI and 21 doubles. He was pretty remarkable with runners in scoring position, hitting .330 and knocking in 55 of his runs batted in, in those situations.

For his efforts, Goins finished with a -0.2 bWAR, which means he was roughly just below average as a middle infielder at the big league level. When you consider that he made just over the league minimum, why are people so hard on him?

Conclusion

Despite the fact that there aren’t a lot of “names” on this list outside of Tulo and Reyes, the Blue Jays have had surprisingly good production from their shortstop position. There’s also the fact that there is a surge of talent at shortstop across the MLB right now, so it sets a somewhat unfair standard for infielders to live up to in many ways.

Realistically, it’s never been a position meant for the most potent offensive players. If Goins had played in another generation (say, the 80’s), he would have played full time and would have celebrated for his defensive skills. These days, they want you to hit too I guess.

Maybe I’m simplifying it a little too much, but when I look back on the production the Blue Jays have received from their shortstops over the last 20 years, it’s a much higher bar than I realized.

Next: J.D. Martinez is a perfect fit in Toronto