Blue Jays have options to cover a Teoscar Hernandez absence

It looks like Teoscar Hernandez could be headed to the Injured List, unless his MRI comes back clean. How will the Blue Jays cover for his absence?

First of all, it’s pretty much impossible to just replace a hitter of Hernandez’s calibre, who has won back to back Silver Slugger awards in the American League. Any way you slice it, the potential for missed time from the 29 year old is a big blow, so hopefully it won’t be an extended absence. That said, it was very clear that he was in pain as he left the field on Wednesday night, and while I’m not a doctor, I’m pretty confident that he’s dealing with some sort of oblique issue. Unfortunately obliques can be complicated, and he could be on the shelf for a while.

In the meantime the Blue Jays are going to have to make due without him, and they do have a few options to fill his spot. Thanks to some roster flexibility the Jays have a few different options, and I imagine they’ll distribute the playing time between a few different players. Unfortunately they’re also dealing with an injury to Danny Jansen, and what looked like a deep roster is starting to show some holes. Sometimes that just can’t be helped, and in the case of the catching position it looks like the Blue Jays will roll with Alejandro Kirk as their main starter, with Zack Collins and Tyler Heineman serving in a back-up role.

As for right field, here are just a few ways the Blue Jays could make due until their All-Star slugger can return.

The most obvious choice

It’s unfortunate that the Blue Jays are already dealing with two significant injuries, especially because we’re only six games into the 2022 campaign. However, it’s even more unfortunate because they had potential replacements in Randal Grichuk and Reese McGuire on the roster earlier this year. Not that they would have been perfect solutions, but in some ways I can’t blame Jays fans for wishing they were still around.

Speaking of Grichuk, he was traded to the Colorado Rockies in exchange for a different type of outfielder, and that’s Raimel Tapia. My assumption is that he’ll be first up to see regular starts, as he was already being mixed into the fold prior to Hernandez’s injury. He started the majority of the time for the Rockies last year, and he’s capable of playing all three outfield positions.

The biggest difference between Tapia and Hernandez is the total lack of power from the former, relying instead on a mix of contact and speed to try and get the job done. His left-handed bat brings a welcome mix to the lineup as well, although it would help if it was a little more potent.

Last season Tapia slashed .273/.327/.372 over 133 games, picking up six home runs and 26 doubles along the way. If there’s an advantage to his game over Hernandez’s, it’s the speed he brings to the table, as he swiped 20 bags in the National League last year. He’s obviously not the type of hitter that’s going to step into Hernandez’s clean-up role in the order, but that doesn’t mean he can’t find a way to contribute from the bottom third of the lineup.

If nothing else, if Hernandez does end up on the IL it will give the Blue Jays a better chance to see what they have in Tapia. Worst case he’s a late-inning defensive replacement and pinch runner, and the hope is that he’s close to a best case scenario, which is a player capable of starting and contributing every day. My guess is we’re about to find out.

Shuffling the lineup

If the Blue Jays want to utilize the versatility of their roster to help cover for Teoscar Hernandez’s injury, they could break up the quasi-platoon they’ve been using at second base.

It remains to be seen if Cavan Biggio can bounce back from his injury-riddled and disappointing 2021 season, but I’d be more than happy to see him playing close to every day and getting the chance to turn things around. The biggest obstacle in the way for him this week has been the solid play from Santiago Espinal, who feels like he’s gaining a grip on the job at second base. If Hernandez is out for an extended period of time, the Blue Jays could always look at moving Biggio to the outfield on a more regular basis.

It’s not an ideal solution for the 27 year old, as I think most of us can agree that it would be better if he could stick to one spot (ideally second base) and focus on finding his groove again, but there could be a silver lining to Hernandez’s injury, at least for Biggio. It might be a path to regular playing time, which was a door that was starting to look like it was closing.

The downside to this idea is that all three of Tapia, Zimmer, and Biggio hit from the left side, so it’s unfortunate the Blue Jays don’t have more of a compliment to the roster for the days they’re facing a left-hander. That said, hopefully Hernandez’s injury won’t keep him on the sidelines for an extended period. If that’s the case, they can live with giving Biggio and Tapia more at-bats against southpaws.

For now, it’s a game of wait and see as far as how severe Hernandez’s injury will be, and just how much time he’ll miss. With any luck, the Blue Jays will only need a short-term solution.