Toronto Blue Jays must sign George Springer at all costs

The Toronto Blue Jays must sign free agent outfielder George Springer at all costs this offseason.

The Blue Jays are reportedly vying hard for the services of George Springer who will in all likelihood sign with the team with the biggest purse strings. In light of the current outfield situation in Toronto, the 31-year old should be the utmost priority this offseason.

The centrefield position is very bleak not only at the major league level but also throughout the entire Blue Jays organization. The team may be forced out of necessity to groom Austin Martin as a centerfielder if the brain trust fails to land Springer.

On the farm, Dasan Brown is arguably the top centrefield prospect, however, the Canadian is still a long way off with only 14 professional games under his belt. Chavez Young is also on the organizational radar but the speedy 23-year old hit just .247 in High A ball in 2019.

More from Toronto Blue Jays News

• Blue Jays: Snapping cold streaks at the right time
• Who Should the Blue Jays Extend First: Guerrero, Bichette or Manoah?
• Blue Jays now hold the top Wild Card spot, and yes that’s a good thing
• Blue Jays may have the tools to use a Bullpen Day
• Blue Jays win important first game after Bichette’s late inning heroics

On the current roster, the outfield depth chart consists of Randal Grichuk, Teoscar Hernandez, and Lourdes Gurriel Jr. The Jays also utilized second baseman Cavan Biggio 18 times in the outfield last season. However, none of the aforementioned major league options are true centerfielders and merely stopgaps.

Springer would solidify the position for the longterm or until his defence begins to wain near the end of the multi-year pact. It is rumoured, he is going to command somewhere in the neighborhood of a 5-year/ $125 million dollar contract to sign on the dotted line.

Aside from Toronto, the New York Mets also appear poised to take a big run at Springer with a new ownership group in place. In 795 career games with the Houston Astros, the outfielder sports a .270/.361/.491 line with 174 home runs and 27.3 WAR over seven seasons.

Regardless of what it costs, the Blue Jays need to do everything in their power to land Springer this offseason. Springer immediately improves the team on both sides of the diamond and makes the Blue Jays a legitimate contender.

The time is now to make a splash on the open market and anything less than Springer is a failure.