The Blue Jays introduced that outfielder Anthony Santander has been positioned on the 10-day injured record as a result of left shoulder irritation. Fellow outfielder Alan Roden has been recalled because the corresponding transfer.
The Jays signed Santander to a five-year, $92.5M deal this offseason. Heavy deferrals reportedly knock the online current worth nearer to $70M, nevertheless it was nonetheless the membership’s greatest offseason splash as they seemed to bounce again from a disappointing 2024 season.
They haven’t acquired a lot from that funding to this point. Santander has six dwelling runs and has drawn walks at an 11.5% clip however has a 26.3% strikeout charge and a .179/.273/.304 batting line. That quantities to a 67 wRC+, indicating he’s been 33% worse than the league common hitter on the plate.
Santander’s .218 batting common on balls in play is absolutely low, however he’s additionally hitting the ball with much less authority than earlier than. He barreled up 11.7% of pitches final yr, however that mark is right down to 4.6% this yr. His present 40.8% exhausting hit charge can be his lowest since 2020. It’s attainable that he hasn’t been totally wholesome for some time. He was out of the lineup on Could tenth with supervisor John Schneider describing his shoulder as “slightly cranky,” per Mitch Bannon of The Athletic. He additionally missed a while as a result of hip soreness this month.
Ideally, a little bit of relaxation will get him wholesome and again on monitor. Final yr, he hit 44 homers for the Orioles whereas solely hanging out 19.4% of the time and drawing walks at an 8.7% clip. That led to a .235/.308/.506 line and 129 wRC+. The Jays had been certainly hoping to get one thing resembling that degree of manufacturing however haven’t gotten it but.
The membership has George Springer and Daulton Varsho in two outfield spots, whereas Nathan Lukes, Jonatan Clase and Myles Straw are additionally within the combine. Roden now comes up and joins that group, who shall be jockeying for taking part in time in one of many outfield corners in addition to the designated hitter slot. Roden cracked the Opening Day roster and hit simply .178/.262/.260 in his first 84 huge league plate appearances. He was then optioned right down to Buffalo, the place he has been mashing, placing up a .361/.446/.583 line for the Bisons.
