Blue Jays: How many names in ink? Not as many as you’d think

After the Blue Jays have endured a free fall in August, it’s fair that fans have started wondering about what the roster could look like in 2022.

As I think about the same thing, I can’t help but marvel at how much my opinion has changed over the last month. In some cases with certain players, not much has changed in the way I view them, and with others the situation is quite different. I guess that’ll happen when you go from looking like a legitimate playoff team to an obvious outsider, and even more when it happens in a matter of a couple of weeks.

The Blue Jays are set to lose several significant contributors in free agency, unless they decide to make competitive offers of their own to retain them. That includes a potential Cy Young candidate in Robbie Ray, an All-Star and down-ballot MVP candidate in Marcus Semien, and several more who have contributed to the success of the 2021 team. I’m confident that Ross Atkins and the front office will make an effort to retain at least one of those two, but it’s going to be hard to keep the whole band together.

With that in mind, I started thinking about how many names would be “written in ink” for next year’s roster at this early stage. Obviously a lot can change over the last 34 games, especially for young players like Santiago Espinal, Kevin Smith, and even Alejandro Kirk, but it’s also getting pretty late in the year for things to change too drastically.

Written in ink into the lineup

For now, here’s what I’ve come up with as far as players we can be all but guaranteed to see in 2022. I’ve started with the lineup, and as always I’ll explain my rationale after, so try not to call for my head too quickly.

C- ?
1B- Vladimir Guerrero Jr.
2B- ?
3B- ?
SS- Bo Bichette
LF- ?
CF- George Springerr
RF- Teoscar Hernandez
DH-

Obviously I’ve left a few significant names off of my list here, but as I said before, this is a group that would considered to be written in ink. Allow me to explain the questions I could see Atkins and his team asking themselves over the winter, and even here in August. I also omitted Semien for now, although I’d sure love to see him back at second base next season.

I’ll start with the catching position, which is a spot on the Blue Jays lineup card that remains up in the air. My guess is that they’ll continue to roll with some combination of Danny Jansen, Reese McGuire, and Alejandro Kirk, at least to start the season, but it wouldn’t shock me if any of the three are shopped and/or traded over the winter. That’s because I think the job will be handed to Gabriel Moreno at some point next season, and I view this very much as a placeholder situation. I could be wrong about that, but if I’m on the right track then I would argue that the Jays should see what kind of value Kirk might carry on the trade market.

Next would be a list of infielders that includes Espinal, Smith, and the currently injured Cavan Biggio. What happens with them could be directly linked to whether Semien comes back, which would occupy second on a full-time basis. If he doesn’t, it wouldn’t shock me at all to see Biggio moved back to second. As for Smith and Espinal, it’s entirely possible that they could each get a shot at third base in 2022, but they’re hardly written in ink at this stage. As it was last winter, second and third base remain as question marks.

Why didn’t I include Lourdes Gurriel Jr. in left field? I’m not sure that he’s done enough to truly establish himself as a foundational piece of the core of the Blue Jays. He’s definitely a popular player and a well-liked teammate, but his defence in the outfield is still an issue even with a cannon for a throwing arm. It’s entirely possible that the Blue Jays give him another shot in 2022, but it wouldn’t shock me to see him move to more of a DH role, perhaps go back to experimenting with playing in the infield more, or even end up as a trade candidate. As for Randal Grichuk, I think they’ll hope to have him in a 4th outfielder role as long as Springer is healthy next season, or perhaps they’ll look to offload his salary in a trade.

Last but not least would be the DH spot, and I think we’ve seen the Blue Jays preference there this season. Ideally they’ll be able to use the DH spot to rotation in guys like Springer, Vlad Jr., Bichette, and more, in order to give them a half day off to rest their leagues. I fully expect that practice to continue next season, unless Gurriel Jr. gets the glove taken out of his hands.

Written in ink into the bullpen

When you look at all of the names that have passed through the Blue Jays bullpen plans in 2021, it’s a real head-scratcher that it’s been such a team weakness. I guess that’s the nature of a volatile position in the big leagues, but it’s still been pretty baffling.

I’m confident that the Blue Jays will look to enter the 2022 campaign with as much or more bullpen depth than they’ve ever had, especially after the way things went this season. With that in mind, I have a few extra names on this list that I may not have otherwise. I’m sure that Atkins and co. will look for as many significant upgrades as they can fit into the budget, but the arms I have listed below will factor into the equation at some point, unless they’re traded or released in a roster juggling move.

1- Jordan Romano
2- Tim Mayza
3- Adam Cimber
4- Trevor Richards
5- Julian Merryweather
6- Ryan Borucki
7- ??
8- ???

Extra: Trent Thornton, Tayler Saucedo, Kirby Snead, Anthony Castro, Connor Overton, etc

As you can see, they’ll have enough arms coming back to make up an eight-man bullpen, but there’s plenty of room for improvement here. That’s especially the case when they don’t know what they can count on from guys like Merryweather and Borucki, who have both yet to live up to their potential because of various injuries. It’s fortunate that Cimber and Richards both have contract control remaining, but I’m sure the Blue Jays will want to improve the late-inning group ahead of next season.

Some of the names I’ve listed above may not still be in the organization by the time next spring rolls around, as is the nature of the bullpen. That said, the Blue Jays will hope for better health and performance from some of the relievers, as the 2021 couldn’t have gone much worse.

Last but not least- The coaching staff

If I’m going to cover the various parts of the MLB roster, I figured I’d do the same with a few key positions on the coaching staff. I’m not going to break down every last area, but I will talk about three of the most significant roles on the bench.

I’ll begin with Pete Walker, who has become an institution in Toronto for his work with pitchers over the years. He’s highly regarded as of the better pitching coaches in baseball, and after the performance we’ve seen from guys like Robbie Ray, Steven Matz, and Ross Stripling in 2021, the legend continues to grow. It’s unfortunate he hasn’t been able to work that same magic with the bullpen, but I don’t think his job will be in jeopardy by any means.

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How about hitting coach Guillermo Martinez? If we narrowed the focus to just the month of August then Martinez’s job might be in jeopardy, but looking at the season as a whole, I would argue he’s done an excellent job. Not only did we witness the breakout of Vladimir Guerrero Jr., we’ve also enjoyed the continued evolution of Teoscar Hernandez into a perennial Silver Slugger candidate, and a bounce-back campaign from Marcus Semien that will earn him some down ballot MVP votes.

The most noticeable difference to me this season is the way the Blue Jays have taken the ball to right field with their right-handed dominant lineup. That was especially the case earlier in the season, but players like Bo Bichette, Lourdes Gurriel Jr., and the trio I’ve already mentioned were making teams pay for shifting around the infield. The hitters were letting the ball travel a little longer in the count and staying aggressive early in their at-bats, and the recipe has worked well. They’ve been in a team-wide slump over the last few weeks, but overall I think Martinez will get solid marks for his work with the hitters.

And then there’s manager Charlie Montoyo, whose seat could be getting hotter by the day. The Blue Jays extended his contract before this season got started, and it doesn’t expire until the end of the 2022 campaign. That said, it’s very common to make sure that managers aren’t entering a season with “lame duck” status, and being let go with a year left happens more often than not.

Montoyo is a likeable character and the front office has adamantly endorsed him in the past, but fans have been growing impatient with him as the team has struggled to keep up in the playoff race. He’s made plenty of questionable decisions that have brought that criticism on as well, and while I once thought he was a lock to return in 2022, now I’m not so sure. In fact, if I had to make a better either way, I’m guessing we’ll see a new bench boss next season.

With such a talented young core in Toronto, we’re going to see a lot of familiar faces back in 2022 no matter what happens. However, there is going to be some changes coming one way or another.