"The Buffalo Boys" brought joy to an otherwise disappointing season for the Blue Jays

Ernie Clement

Clement, 27, came over to the Jays with some big league experience under his belt but hadn't previously ran with the opportunities like he did this year. The former 4th-round draft pick (2017) appeared in 103 games for the Cleveland Guardians but hit just .214 with an OPS+ of 56. In a six-game cameo with the Oakland A's last year, he went 1-for-18 (.056) with only a double to his name.

After signing a minor league contract with the Blue Jays just before the regular season kicked off, Clement immediately started hitting. In fact, through the end of the season he never really stopped hitting. In 72 games for the Bisons, he hit 11 home runs with 58 RBI, walked (26) more than he struck out (16) and had a shocking .348 average and .944 OPS. It's no wonder why this guy got some looks in the major leagues.

This translated nicely in The Show as well. In 30 games, Clement hit .380 with 10 RBI, seven runs scored and 19 base hits. He continued to show off an advanced eye at the plate and was the perfect slap-hitter the Blue Jays needed when all it'd take to score a run is a bloop single.

Clement is the type of utility player who has some pop, can steal bases, plays all over the diamond and makes a ton of contact. In other words, he's every manager's dream. His peers reportedly love him as well, which helps his case in a big way. There's no doubt that he'll be back next season.

Handing out a letter grade to Clement is tough, because while he dominated the minor leagues, he didn't get a ton of playing time in the big leagues. Sure, his numbers looked great all around, but a larger sample size would be nice in this instance. Regardless, he did what was asked of him, so there's no complaints here.

Grade: B+

Spencer Horwitz

The 25-year-old Horwitz had an even smaller sample size than Clement in the majors, but he still deserves some love for his contributions.

Horwitz, a former 24th-round pick by the Blue Jays in the 2019 MLB Draft, made it into just 15 games to kick off his big league career. He hit ultimately hit .256 with a .726 OPS, numbers that may not exactly jump off the page; but there's more to the story with him.

On June 18, his big league debut, Horwitz went 1-for-2 with a run scored, a run driven in, and two walks. He was only up with the team for a few days before being optioned, but that's one heck of an introduction. When he was recalled again in September, he had a pinch-hit appearance to start things off before going 3-for-4 with two runs scored, his first big league home run, and two runs batted in in his second game back.

From there, the playing time for him was scarce. He rarely ever started games, usually only coming in as either a pinch-hitter or defensive replacement, so it's understandable why his average began to dip. Inconsistent playing time can (and usually does) lead to inconsistent results.

In his second-to-last appearance of the regular season, Horwitz went 1-for-4 with a walk but drove in a career-high three runs. It's games like this one and the game he hit his first home run that show what he's capable of doing. In the minor leagues, Horwitz, like Clement, was an absolute machine. He hit 30 doubles and 10 home runs in 107 games with more walks (78) than strikeouts (72) and a .337 batting average.

Moving forward, Horwitz gives the organization an internal replacement for Brandon Belt, who is likely going to be gone next year. The longtime veteran has dropped hints at a possible retirement coming soon, so his tenure in Toronto is almost certainly a one-and-done.

Grade: B-

Davis Schneider

Finally, we have Davis Schneider, who did more than enough to earn a spot in the hearts of Blue Jays fans everywhere. He was selected in the 28th round (which no longer exists!) of the 2017 MLB Draft and had been quietly grinding through each level of the minors since.

It wasn't until 2022 that Schneider really began to see some attention brought to his name. He hit 16 home runs and had an impressive .823 OPS in 113 games between three levels of the minor leagues. To kick off the 2023 season, he hit 21 home runs in just 87 games for the Bisons, posting a .553 SLG and .969 OPS, which was more than enough to earn his first promotion to the big leagues.

Naturally, Schneider, the perfect underdog story, ran with the opportunity. He promptly homered in his first big league at-bat, hit another one two days later and then hit home runs in three straight games just under two weeks later. Schneider's run to start his career was setting records left and right and was putting him firmly in the spotlight. He's a low-key kind of guy who prefers to quietly go about his business, but there was no hiding from the big stage after starting a career like that.

What made Schneider so unique off the bat (pun intended) was how he handled pitchers making adjustments to him quickly. He had some self-assigned weaknesses early on, but he made adjustments of his own to branch off of what the opposition was throwing at him. This is an admirable trait that you typically only see out of established veterans. The guy is an absolute gamer and is fully deserving of all of the love he's received from Blue Jays fans.

Moving forward, this guy is not going anywhere. He may not have outright earned the starting second base gig in 2024 just yet, but he did plenty to put his name at or near the top of the list. He will have to compete with the likes of Clement, Santiago Espinal and Cavan Biggio for playing time, but we have yet to see a reason why he can't take the job and run with it.

Grade: A

Previous report cards:

• Chris Bassitt
• Brandon Belt
• José Berríos
• Bo Bichette
• Cavan Biggio