How long is George Springer's leash in the leadoff spot?

It has been a renaissance season for Toronto Blue Jays veteran George Springer. The 35-year-old has been putting up some of the best numbers of his career since coming over to the Blue Jays in 2021. He's already surpassed last seasons totals in home runs (21), and RBIs (62) and he's slashing .292/.384/.521 with a .905 OPS. He's never hit over .270 since he joined the Blue Jays and he's never gotten on base at more than a .352 clip.

One big change for Springer this year is moving out of the leadoff spot, a position he's held for the majority of his career. He's hit leadoff in 1012 of the 1409 MLB games he's played in. From that spot in the order he has hit 208 home runs, with 1082 hits in 4055 at-bats, with a .350 OBP and .824 OPS.

How long is George Springer's leash in the leadoff spot?

He also hit his 61st lead off home run on Wednesday against Pittsburg, putting him 20 behind the all-time record set by the late, great, Rickey Henderson (81). That was also the 22nd time he's hit a leadoff home run for the Blue Jays, tying him with Devon White for the franchise lead in that category.

However, last season he struggled in that spot for Toronto in what was arguably his worst season in the big leagues. He batted first in 101 games and slashed just .214/.291/.349 with 12 home runs, 41 walks and 85 strikeouts in 453 plate appearances. The Blue Jays moved him further down the order. It didn't help much as he finished with a 1.1 bWAR - the lowest of his career, in 145 games managing an OPS+ of 91.

Springer hitting leadoff for the Blue Jays going into 2025 was one of the major storylines during Spring Training and as he struggled, it made the decision easier to not start him at the top of the order when the real games started.

Springer burst out of the gates hitting .306/.406/.482 in March/April batting in the middle of the lineup and it appeared as if the secret to getting back the Springer of old, was to move the older Springer out of the leadoff spot.

Large parts of this season were carried by Springer being the focal point for the offense. In the 60 games he has appeared in, in which the Blue Jays have won, Springer has hit 17 of his 21 home runs with a 1.079 OPS. When Springer has been hot, so have the Blue Jays. Unfortunately, at the end of July, Springer suffered a terrifying head injury during a game against Baltimore, getting hit in the head with a pitch and staying down for several moments.

Once he returned, the Blue Jays decided to return him back to his old spot, batting leadoff, and in the five games he's hit there, he's hit well. Springer has gone 6-15 with three home runs, five RBIs and a .409 OBP. It's as if he hasn't missed a step since returning from the concussion scare, which is a great sign for the Blue Jays.

But are those the kind of numbers they want out of the leadoff spot? There is an argument to be made that Springer would be better off staying slightly lower in the order, batting behind guys that are getting on base, as he's proven he has the ability to drive them in. Unfortunately, the Blue Jays don't have a true leadoff hitter.

Bo Bichette did a fine job in that spot. In 82 games he hit 10 home runs with 96 hits in 355 at-bats. But his 61 strikeouts are a little high, and his .310 OBP was a little low for that spot in the order. Nathan Luke had some productive outings. In 24 games he had 25 hits in 99 at-bats with four home runs, a .315 OBP and .770 OPS.

But Lukes hasn't been starting against left-handed pitches and so Springer could fill that role in the very least as a platoon situation. But if he's going to bat there against lefties, you might as well keep him there against righties.

By putting Springer in the first spot in the order, it also gives him a chance to be in a run producing situation anytime outside of the first at bat of the game (if you're not counting solo home runs). Based on how productive the bottom of the order has been for the Blue Jays, this could be a very tough situation to place on opposing pitchers as the 7-9 hitters are hitting a combined .260/.326/.372 with a .698 OPS, putting more pressure on the pitchers to not let the Blue Jays turn over the order.

What it comes down to is not so much how long Springer should be in the leadoff spot, but who else on the team is going to step up and realistically claim that spot. As long as Springer is healthy and producing at this rate, that spot should now be his to lose for the remainder of the season.