Mitch Stringer-USA TODAY Sports
It’s been a bizarre start to the 2020 Major League Baseball season for the Toronto Blue Jays.
First, the Blue Jays had to find a home after their approval was denied by the Canadian federal government to play games in Toronto forcing them to search for a new home, then they suffered a few painful losses in extra innings to both the Miami Marlins and Tampa Bay Rays at home, and finally their top prospect and best player Bo Bichette sustained a knee injury that will keep him out for a few weeks.
But despite these early shortcomings, the Toronto Blue Jays sit just 0.5 games out of a playoff spot behind the Baltimore Orioles and that might be due to the offensive emergence of centerfielder Randal Grichuk.
Grichuck is seeing the ball better than any other Blue Jays player on the roster right now.
After struggling to hit the long ball in his first 38 at-bats of the season he now has six home runs in the past six games including a four-game home run streak. He has compiled a .344 batting average with 12 runs and 15 RBI through 17 games. In yesterday’s game against the Orioles Grichuck went 2-for-4 with two home runs and three RBIs in a 5-2 win.
“His approach was good in spring training and summer camp and he’s kept it going,” said Blue Jays manager Charlie Montoyo. “We were saying on someone needs to pick up the slack for Bo and that is what [Grichuck] is doing for us. He could hit second, he could hit fourth, he could hit anywhere in the lineup. He’s been huge for us.”
Just before the start of the 2018 season, the Blue Jays acquired Grichuk in a three-player trade with the St. Louis Cardinals that sent Right-hander Dominic Leone and prospect Conner Greene to St. Louis as part of the deal. He immediately became the favorite to replace six-time All-Star and three-time Silver Slugger Award winner, outfielder Jose Bautista.
After a 2018 campaign that saw a career-high 25 home runs, 32 doubles and 58 extra-base hits to go along with a .245 average, the Blue Jays inked him to a five-year contract extension worth $52 million.
"The offense has always stood out. He’s always performed," said Blue Jays General Manager Ross Atkins back in April 2019. "He’s always hit the ball hard, he’s always hit it far and it usually goes over the fence at a pretty good rate. In our view he’s been an above-average defender and those are hard things to piece together."
Grichuk will look to build upon an already impressive season as the Blue Jays host the Philadelphia Phillies in a doubleheader at Sahlen Field today. In the first matchup, RHP Chase Anderson will take to the hill for the Blue Jays. Since returning from a strained oblique, Anderson has a 3.00 ERA, four strikeouts and zero decisions. Toronto hopes Anderson can go deep into the game.
The Phillies will roll out their No. 2 prospect RHP Spencer Howard. Howard is 0-1 in two starts with a 7.88 ERA and six strikeouts. In his last outing he had to leave early due to a blister on his right middle finger.
First pitch of the doubleheader is set for 1:07 PM.
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