Blue Jays: 2021's "what ifs" could be the answers in 2022

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Apr 2, 2019; Toronto, Ontario, CAN; Toronto Blue Jays general manager Ross Atkins speaks to the media during a press conference against the Baltimore Orioles at Rogers Centre. Mandatory Credit: Nick Turchiaro-USA TODAY Sports /

The Blue Jays had a lot of things go their way in 2021, but there were plenty of “what ifs” as well. I believe that those questions could become answers this season.

What I’m talking about are the kind of questions like, “What if Kirby Yates and David Phelps had stayed healthy?”, which is the sort of thing that could have made the difference between making the playoffs and missing out by one game, as they did at the end of the regular season despite posting 91 wins.

It’s natural for fans to ask these questions, especially after a season when the team was so close to advancing to the playoffs, but in many cases I think the frustrations of last season could be potential strengths and bonuses going forward. Yates won’t be back, but maybe Phelps himself will be able to bounce back and answer the first question I’ve asked here, after he re-signed with the Blue Jays on a MiLB contract in late November.

Those two veterans weren’t the only questions surrounding the Blue Jays in 2021, as injuries took a toll on the roster throughout the season, and there were enough head-scratching moments at the end of games that I think it’s understandable if we felt a little cheated about missing the postseason. That said, I think there are at least five of these situations that could be turned into a positive going forward, or at the very least have potential to go that way.

I realize that not everything is going to go in one team’s favour throughout the course of a long 162-game season, but let’s have a look at what could go right for the Blue Jays in 2022 without them even having to add additional players to the roster.

TORONTO, ON – OCTOBER 02: George Springer #4 of the Toronto Blue Jays hits a home run during a MLB game against the Baltimore Orioles at Rogers Centre on October 2, 2021 in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. (Photo by Vaughn Ridley/Getty Images) /

Starting with the obvious

One of the biggest “what if” questions for the Blue Jays last season was how much they missed out on from George Springer because of his various injuries. The 3x All-Star was very productive when he was able to limp into the lineup, but he finished with just 78 games played and was greatly missed when he was on the Injured List.

If the Blue Jays can get a healthy Springer in 2022 I think there’s potential for him to be one of the most valuable players in the American League. He provided that kind of impact while playing on one leg for the majority of his appearances last season, and I think he has plenty of prime left as long as he can play at close to 100%.

Despite dealing with those various injuries, Springer slashed .264/.352/.555 with 22 home runs and 50 RBI over just 299 at-bats. It might be ambitious to hope for a 600 at-bat season now that he’s 32, but that’s an impressive pace he was setting, and again, doing it while playing injured for the majority of the time.

As important as his own impact can be, Springer will also be counted on to help make up for the loss of Marcus Semien in free agency. It’s very possible that Ross Atkins and the front office will look for a high-end player to add to the infield mix, but a healthy Springer could take some pressure off, especially when we look at the overall team success last season, and how they project going forward.

More often than not it looked like Springer was having the time of his life playing with his young Blue Jays teammates, and it would be a massive help if he can do more of that in 2022 by staying healthy. If we’re talking “what ifs” for the near-playoff-miss in 2021, I don’t know if there’s a bigger question than what they could have if their star centre fielder had been healthy all year long.

TORONTO, ON – SEPTEMBER 03: Nate Pearson #24 of the Toronto Blue Jays delivers a pitch during a MLB game against the Oakland Athletics at Rogers Centre on September 3, 2021 in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. (Photo by Vaughn Ridley/Getty Images) /

When will the top prospect become a star?

If you ask me, one of the biggest disappointments of last season was the fact that Nate Pearson was only able to pitch 15.0 innings for the Blue Jays as he once again battled injuries. It’s been a recurring theme for the right-hander over the last few seasons, and something he’ll hope to put behind him in 2022.

For years “Big Nate” has been regarded as one of the top prospects in baseball, but some of that shine has started to wear off with repeated injury issues. That said, it wouldn’t take long for him to regain some of that attention if he can just stay healthy, and as of now there’s a big role waiting for him if he can do just that.

The Blue Jays have a very strong top-four in their starting rotation that includes Kevin Gausman, Jose Berrios, Hyun Jin Ryu, and Alek Manoah, but there are plenty of question marks about the fifth spot. It’s entirely possible and even likely that Atkins and company will bring in some outside help, but right now Pearson could have a legitimate chance to win the job. He’d have to battle the likes of Ross Stripling, Thomas Hatch, Anthony Kay, and more among the internal candidates, but he would have the strongest upside of the group if things go well.

Of course, that’s been a big “if” so far for the 25 year old, and there’s no guarantee that he’ll win that rotation job even if he can stay healthy this spring. It’s possible he could land in the bullpen in a multi-inning role to start the year, where he could be a dominant weapon, or he might even spend some time in Buffalo waiting for a chance to join the rotation, and getting some extra work in.

As much as Blue Jays fans love to talk about who could be signed or acquired through a trade to join the rotation, I can’t help but hope that Pearson can win the job and run with it. If he could reach his potential that would push a high-end rotation into the argument for the best in baseball.

Jul 7, 2021; Baltimore, Maryland, USA; Toronto Blue Jays third baseman Cavan Biggio (8) runs out a rbi double during the first inning against the Baltimore Orioles at Oriole Park at Camden Yards. Mandatory Credit: Tommy Gilligan-USA TODAY Sports /

An answer in the infield

He’s been one of our favourite players to talk about lately here at Jays Journal, but that’s because there is so much potential for a bounce-back from Cavan Biggio in 2022.

There’s no denying how poorly things went for the 26 year old in 2021, but we also have to take the numbers with a grain of salt. He finished with a slash line of .224/.322/.356 with seven home runs, 10 doubles, and 27 RBI over 250 at-bats. He struggled a bit with the transition to third base after having spent the majority of his time at second during his MLB career, and most importantly, he just couldn’t get healthy.

While there are legitimate concerns about Biggio’s future as a big leaguer, I’m surprised at how quickly people have forgotten about his potential upside. Over the first two seasons we saw him in the big leagues he had a .369 on-base percentage, showing the ability to hit for power, steal some bases, and play solid defence at second. I mean, it was barely a year ago that the Blue Jays were using him along with Vladimir Guerrero Jr. and Bo Bichette for some of their biggest pre-season promotions.

While I don’t expect Biggio to be a star, or to make up for the loss of an MVP calibre player like Marcus Semien, I do think he can be a significant asset for the Blue Jays in 2022. Ideally he’ll be able to return to second base for the bulk of his playing time, but it’s possible we see him continue in a super-utility role of sorts, playing some second, third, and first base, and a bit in the outfield as well. That will likely depend on what the Blue Jays do once the lockout is over and they can resume their pursuit of roster upgrades, but there’s a very good chance Biggio will see regular playing time next season.

Hopefully he can get back to 100% health and play like the budding young star we saw in 2019 and 2020. He doesn’t have to do the heavy lifting for this group, but if he can be that 3-4 WAR player again it will go a long way to solving the questions surrounding their infield. What if the Blue Jays had a fully healthy Biggio last season? My guess is they would have made the playoffs.

TORONTO, ON – APRIL 11: President and CEO Mark Shapiro of the Toronto Blue Jays talks to general manager Ross Atkins before the start of their home opener against the Milwaukee Brewers at Rogers Centre on April 11, 2017 in Toronto, Canada. (Photo by Tom Szczerbowski/Getty Images) /

What if they had acted a little sooner?

To wrap this up, I considered asking questions like, “what if the Blue Jays had been able to play all of their home games at the Rogers Centre”, but I think Jays fans universally agree that would have been a big help. Instead, I’ll aim some rare criticism toward the front office and ask, “what if they had made their in-season trades earlier than they did?”.

Now to be fair, we don’t know what trades were available prior to the July 31 trade deadline last year, or which players were being shopped by other teams in May or June. That list may have been very short, or the asking price could have been far too difficult to swallow. Either way, many Blue Jays fans felt that the front office should have acquired some help earlier than they did, especially in the bullpen.

I actually feel like last season was a lesson for both the front office, and also for Charlie Montoyo and the coaching staff. For the front office, I don’t know that they’d necessarily call their decisions last year a mistake, but I do think they’ve shifted to having a greater sense of urgency than they had a year ago. I suspect that if the Blue Jays were bit with the injury bug early in the 2022 season, Atkins wouldn’t hesitate to bring some outside help in. Again, that’s subject to what’s available, but last year’s mid-season struggles in the bullpen proved to be very costly.

As for Montoyo, I think the lesson for the skipper is to have a shorter hook for some of his relievers. We saw too long of a leash for veteran bullpen arms like Tyler Chatwood and Rafael Dolis among others, and it cost the Jays several games prior to the All-Star break. In many cases Montoyo’s hands were tied due to a lack of strong options in the bullpen, but I wouldn’t give his early season management of the pitchers an overly positive grade either.

Next. What role is left for Randal Grichuk?. dark

It wasn’t the only weakness on the roster in 2021, but I would argue that the bullpen proved to be the Achilles heel for the Blue Jays last year. If they had been able to figure things out when they were blowing games early in the year, they might not have needed to go on such an epic run to get back into the postseason picture. Hopefully that’s a mistake that Atkins, Montoyo, and the rest of the Blue Jays’ brain trust can learn from going forward, because this team has a chance to do something special if they can make it back to the postseason. “What if they had made some moves earlier to improve the bullpen?”- Hopefully that won’t be a question we’re asking ourselves again this coming season.

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Blue Jays: 2021’s “what ifs” could be the answers in 2022

Starting with the obvious

When will the top prospect become a star?

An answer in the infield

What if they had acted a little sooner?

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