Toronto Blue Jays has agreed to sign free-field player George Springer. The deal is six years and $ 150 million, confirms Jim Bowden of CBS Sports HQ.
Springer, 31, spent the first seven years of his career with the Astros, forming three All-Star teams and posting some of the best post-season power numbers in recent memory along the way.
In the shortened 2020 season, Springer reached 0.265 / .359 / .540 (140 OPS +) with 14 homers, 32 RBI and 37 executions. In 2019, his season was shortened to 122 games due to injury, but he reached 0.292 / .383 / .591 (150 OPS +) with 39 homers, 96 RBI and 96 races. He finished seventh in the MVP vote, despite the abbreviated campaign.
In 63 career playoff games, Springer reached 0.269 / 0.349 / 0.546 with 15 doubles, 19 homers, 38 RBI and 43 races. He won the World Series 2017 MVP after hitting 0.379 with 1,471 OPS, three doubles and five home runs in seven games. In 14 World Series games in his career, he is a .339 / .456 / .839 hitter. He is fourth in the postseason home run, behind Manny Ramirez, Bernie Williams and Derek Jeter.
The postseason pedigree looks like a good fit with a relatively inexperienced group that was recovered in two games against Rays in the first round last year.
There is also serious thunder in this Blue Jays formation, with Springer ahead of names like Cavan Biggio (122 OPS + last year), Bo Bichette (127), Teoscar Hernandez (146) Lourdes Gurriel (139) and Vladimir Guerrero (115) .
After a trio of fourth place and less than 0.500, the Jays went 32-28 last season, securing the eighth and final spot in the AL playoff, although they had a better track record than the Astros, now a former Springer team, who occupied the sixth slot due to finishing second in AL Oeste. The young Jays started with 7-11 and also had a streak of six straight losses in September. The hope would be with the extra year of experience for some of the position players, the addition of Springer and the entire season, they will be more consistent and not so hampered by minor inconsistency struggles.