George Springer vows that Blue Jays 'will learn' from disappointing 2024 performance

The 2024 Toronto Blue Jays poor performance led to one of the more dramatic roster restructurings in recent memory. At the same time, it was an entirely predictable outcome if the team got off to the kind of slow start they did. With hindsight, is there something that could have been done and can anything be learned? A veteran player on the Blue Jays roster vows that the team will learn from this meltdown of a season and present a much different version of itself once the calendar flips a page.

George Springer is certainly one of the more vocal leaders on the Blue Jays. One of the early players to publicly discuss the Houston sign-stealing scandal, Springer is now openly dissecting the disastrous 2024 Blue Jays season and what the future may hold. While it may feel like Vladimir Guerrero Jr. is the true captain and leader of this squad, Springer still offers an important voice in a clubhouse that is searching for answers. In the fourth year of a six-year contract, Springer will most likely be sticking around next season despite his overall poor performance on the field. Although the numbers have ticked up slightly in the second half, the uneven production may cause some to wonder if someone like that can really be a leader.

In a wide-ranging interview with Sportskeeda, Springer was directly asked what went wrong for the team. Springer cut right to the chase by saying, "I don't know. I just think we got off to a little bit of a slow start...We did some things really, really well, and it just didn't turn into what you would call a positive result."

Surely Springer was being a solid teammate and didn't want to throw anyone under the bus. However, the reasons for the Blue Jays demise were plain for all observers to see. Not enough hitting was the chief culprit and his commentary about doing some things well may be true, but ultimately the scoreboard is what counts. He is right to state that they ran into hot teams early on. At the same time, would the Blue Jays have beaten the Royals if they played them during this most recent slide instead of April? Do the Blue Jays have someone better or equal to Bobby Witt Jr.? Can the Blue Jays stars even raise a candle to Cleveland's third baseman and a host of others? In short, the answer may be that the Blue Jays are simply not talented enough.

Springer's most interesting commentary came at the end of the interview when he tried to connect this season to next season. Asked to look into the future, he observed that, "I think everybody will learn from this and understand what we didn't do, what we did do right or what we didn't do right. We'll put it all out there again next year."

The interesting part about these comments is that baseball is a sport in which observers are quick to make judgments about a team if they aren't performing at an elite level. If a club is mired in a stretch where they can't score runs, a lot of fans believe the players are displaying a lack of effort. The opposite may be true, but the optics of not scoring runs look terrible because it appears as if you don't care and are not trying. Those negative optics are precisely what ailed the Blue Jays this season. To Springer's credit, he did his best to explain that phenomenon and how the team will try to be different heading into next season.

Looking forward, Springer cited his lineup colleagues Bo Bichette and Guerrero as the biggest reason for a possible turnaround next season. Of course, both are currently under contract for only one more season and the front office will need to make big decisions on the pair. Bichette has endured a nightmarish season on all fronts, ranging from a miserable offensive performance early in the season to multiple IL stints. On the other hand, Vladdy has been on an absolute tear since maybe the beginning of May. A four-time All-Star this year, the 25-year-old is on fire, nearing the 30 home run mark while playing an incredibly healthy amount of games.

On a larger level, it's important that Springer made these comments because it underscores that a key member of this roster understands how badly the season went. Mostly, the question of whether this team can improve will hinge on factors outside Springer's control. He can help steer the ship, but the big decisions about the future of this franchise will be made by higher-ups. The one thing that can't be denied is that these are enormous decisions.