Blue Jays’ Devon Travis back atop lineup where he belongs

Toronto Blue Jays second baseman Devon Travis is slotted to bat leadoff this afternoon in the Jays third Grapefruit League game of the spring, a place where he firmly belongs.

Devon Travis has had a promising spring thus far and all signs point to him being fully recovered from the knee issue that saw him miss most of last season. Travis is ahead of schedule and taking full reps with the rest of the team in Dunedin. The plan is for “Devo” to play every second spring game moving forward according to the Manager.

The 27-year old has the potential to be the X-factor this season if the oft-injured Travis can find a way to remain on the field in 2018. Travis is notorious for grinding out professional at-bats and putting the ball in play consistently and although he is not a burner on the base paths, he is best suited for the leadoff role. Veteran Curtis Granderson could also see some at-bats atop the order when Travis is not in the lineup.

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Travis has managed only 213 games over the past three seasons due to an assortment of injuries. The former 13th round pick of the Detroit Tigers sports a career .292/.331/.462 line with 24 homers, 64 doubles, and a 6.0 WAR rating.

The second-baseman proved how he can propel the Jays offence last May hitting .364/.373/.646 with 4 home runs and 16 doubles in a 26 game stretch before hitting the disabled list for the remainder of the campaign.

He has the ability to be the table setter for the Jays big boppers especially if he can find a way to grind out a few more walks atop the order. Unfortunately, the question surrounding Travis will always be his health and he will need to prove the knee can survive the rigors of playing every day.

Next: Blue Jays: Plenty of positive takeaways from spring victory

Travis and company will take it day by day and see how today’s first test goes but make no bones about it, if healthy he is the straw that stirs the Blue Jays offensive drink atop the lineup.