Blue Jays: George Springer giving serious thought to playing in Toronto

There is speculation within the industry that free agent outfielder George Springer is giving serious thought to playing in Toronto.

Jon Morosi of the MLB Network appeared on the Fan 590 radio morning show “Lead Off” yesterday to address the Blue Jays offseason rumours. Morosi divulged to the show’s listeners that he was told by a source close to George Springer that the outfielder is giving some serious thought about playing in Toronto.

Springer is the free agent crown jewel among available position players this offseason and the Blue Jays desperately need to shore up their outfield situation for the long haul. The 31-year old outfielder is reportedly going to fetch somewhere in the neighborhood of a five-year deal with the total value of the contract north of $100 million.

The former 1st round selection of the 2011 amateur draft has spent his entire seven-year career with the Houston Astros organization. Springer also has a relationship with current Blue Jays bench coach Dave Hudgens who was the Astros Hitting Coach from 2015 through to 2018.

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In 51 games last season, Springer hit .265/.359/.540 with 14 home runs in the pandemic shortened season. In 2010, the centerfielder hit .292/.383/.591 with 140 hits including 39 round-trippers, 96 runs batted in, and an impressive 6.4 WAR in 122 games.

In 795 career games with the Astros, Springer hit .270/.361/.491 with 174 homers and a 27.3 WAR. He has 63 postseason games under his belt including a World Series title in 2017. The outfielder also won the World Series MVP award after hitting .379 with five home runs in seven games versus the Los Angeles Dodgers

Springer would instantly make the Blue Jays a better team on both sides of the diamond and give some defensive credibility to the centrefield position once again. The outfielder is a three-time All-Star with a pair of Silver Slugger awards in his trophy case.

It would appear the Jays may have to outbid the New York Mets and the Boston Red Sox if they want to land Springer but it would be a worthwhile investment and hey, it can’t be a bad thing that the free agent is already giving Toronto some serious thought.