Blue Jays: Even with versatility, Brandon Drury will have to fight to fit

While Brandon Drury has looked better lately, he’s going to have to make a solid contribution for the rest of the season to fit with this roster going forward.

The Blue Jays’ rebuild plans are starting to come together, and for parts of the roster it’s not hard to see how things are going to fit going forward. Realistically, some of it already has.

The roles for the players currently on the Blue Jays’ roster aren’t set in stone necessarily, but with young talents like Vladimir Guerrero Jr., Bo Bichette, Cavan Biggio, Lourdes Gurriel Jr., Danny Jansen and others filling out the lineup card, it could be a dog fight for playing time in the future.

One of the players who could be in the middle of that pack is Brandon Drury, even with the versatility he’s shown this season. He’s been valuable in that way in particular, as he’s spent time at second base, third, first, shortstop, as well as both outfield corners. He’s done whatever has been asked of him since coming over to Toronto from the Yankees, and yet his fit with this roster still remains a question mark.

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His best positions would be at second and third base, but one would have to assume that Biggio and Guerrero Jr. will occupy those spots with regularity. Drury fits well as a back-up to those two, but ideally a team’s back-up infielder would be able to play shortstop as well. Drury has made a few appearances there out of necessity this season, but he’s only made four starts there in his entire career, and it’s a little beyond his skill set defensively.

Being a capable outfielder helps as well, but with a group that already includes Lourdes Gurriel Jr., Randal Grichuk, Teoscar Hernandez, Derek Fisher and even Billy McKinney, he’s quite a ways down the depth chart there as well.

Despite being a man without a regular position, Charlie Montoyo has found a way to give Drury a fair bit of opportunity throughout the season. He’s played in 87 games and had 307 at-bats so far, but unfortunately he hasn’t been able to take advantage at the plate. He’s slashed .228/.273/.410 with 13 home runs, 15 doubles, and 32 RBI, but he’s struggled to make contact at times, whiffing 87 times against just 19 walks.

He does have three years of arbitration left on his contract, so the Blue Jays could keep him around for the foreseeable future and use him in a similar capacity to how they have this season. However, the wave of young talent that’s arrived this year is far from the end of it, and there are some potential stars in the mix. If guys like Guerrero Jr., Bichette, Biggio, Gurriel Jr. and others continue to develop the way they have been, they’re not going to be sitting that often. Stars play everyday, and Drury is going to have to earn his way in Toronto.

Chances are he’ll get the opportunity to do that for the rest of the 2019 season in Toronto, even if it means he’ll bounce around the field a little more. However, don’t be surprised if the Blue Jays see him as an expendable piece when the offseason rolls around. I’m not saying that we should write off his future in Toronto just yet, but he’s got an uphill climb to earn his place with the next generation of this team, and it’s not going to be an easy one.