Blue Jays: Five players looking to bounce back in 2022

Danny Jansen

After taking over the catching duties from veteran Russell Martin late into the 2018 campaign, Danny Jansen has been the Blue Jays’ primary catcher over the past few seasons.

Known for his defensive ability behind the plate, Jansen has built a solid repertoire with multiple members of the Jays pitching staff, most notably Hyun Jin Ryu. His career .994 fielding percentage is solid for an everyday catcher and his arm is no slouch either, catching 24% of base stealers which is just a hair under the league average at 26% through his three seasons.

While his bat played well in the minors, it has yet to really make a full appearance at the Major League level. His career .212 batting average and .694 OPS through 732 at-bats is a tough stat line to look at but he does have some pop, evident by his .473 slugging percentage last season.

The 2021 campaign was rough for Jansen, as the former Gold Glove nominee battled injury and a poor start to the campaign, slashing .144/.239/.260 two months into the season. Once he returned in early September from his second IL stint, Jansen found another notch and was able to put the ball in play, amassing a .310 average through his last 20 games with five home runs and 17 RBI with a 1.072 OPS.

Looking at the bigger picture, Jansen is in some pretty tough competition when it comes to securing playing time at the big league level. Alejandro Kirk is gunning for more playing time and is also looking to bounce back this season while top prospect Gabriel Moreno should be making his debut sometime this year, adding more pressure to the situation.

While Kirk or Jansen could be traded before Opening Day, Illinois product will do himself a lot of favours if he can start strong at the plate in 2022, as a similar start like last season may not play well with Moreno and Kirk knocking on the door.

Jansen may see less playing time with these two prospects looking to make their mark but he does have the most experience on the team, which could bode well with newcomer Kevin Gausman and his batterymate Ryu still in the rotation. Continuing to play solid defence will do him wonders but he needs to find a way to swing the bat with consistency if he wants to be more than just a personal catcher for one pitcher on the roster moving forward.