During a break from batting practice, George Springer jogged from third base at the Toronto Blue Jays spring training center to the bullpen. As he caught his breath with his teammates Bo Bichette, Vladimir Guerrero Jr., Lourdes Gurriel Jr., Teoscar Hernandez and Danny Jansen, he realized that there was nothing to drink during a refreshment break. So he decided to take matters into his own hands.
Posted at 8:59 p.m.
Springer asked the group if anyone needed water or Gatorade. A minute later, he reappeared with half a dozen bottles – and a banana for Jansen – and handed them out to his teammates.
Blue Jays manager Charlie Montoyo said Springer’s kind of self-sacrifice has elevated him to leader status in the Blue Jays locker room. It’s the kind of presence the Blue Jays were hoping for when they signed Springer in January 2021, but he couldn’t fill his role to full potential last year as he started the season on the roster. injuried people.
“He’s really cool. Everyone loves him and he’s a leader too, noted Montoyo. It was difficult to carry out his tasks as leaders last year, because he was injured. Now that he is healthy, he will have a big impact on this dressing room. »
With a quadriceps injury that kept him out of the Blue Jays roster from March to April, Springer said he got to know his teammates by watching them from a distance.
“I was able to see how the guys worked from off the court and it gave me a very different perspective,” Springer said. But I was able to rejoin the team afterwards and I was happy to do so. »
Springer finally made his Jays debut on the 23rdand game of the season, April 28. He appeared in 78 of 162 games in 2021, finishing with a .264 batting average, 22 home runs and 50 RBIs.
At 32, Springer is one of the oldest Blue Jays players and brings a lot of experience. He was a three-time All-Star (2017-2019) and a two-time Silver Rod recipient (2017, 2019). Even more notable, he was crowned World Series champion in 2017 while with the Houston Astros and was named the playoffs most valuable player.
Although Springer admits he has more Major League Baseball experience than most of his teammates, he refuses to call himself a leader.
“I mean, I don’t see myself that way. I do what I have to do and play the way I know how to, Springer said. I think the good news for me is that I have experience and an understanding of the journey we want to take. I’ve played for a lot of good teams, so I think experience is everything to me. »
The Blue Jays will host the Texas Rangers on April 8 as a curtain raiser for both teams.