Brandon Valenzuela MLB debut lone Blue Jays bright spot in disastrous weekend sweep
Photo credit: https://www.mlb.com/bluejays
A sweep at the hands of the Chicago White Sox, paired with the loss of Alejandro Kirk, made for a miserable weekend for the Toronto Blue Jays, who return to Rogers Centre 4-5 despite one of the easiest schedules possible.
Offensively, the Toronto Blue Jays looked lost most of the weekend, scoring a total of seven runs in three games.
They’ve now lost five of their last six games on the way to series losses against the Rockies and White Sox.
As ugly as it’s been lately, there’s all kinds of time remaining for the Blue Jays to turn this around.
The lone bright spot in Toronto's 3-0 loss to the White Sox on Sunday afternoon was the MLB debut of Blue Jays catching prospect Brandon Valenzuela.
Brandon Valenzuela greets his family ahead of his MLB debut 🥹
And wouldn't you know it, on the second pitch of his first MLB at-bat Valenzuela ripped a hard single for his first career hit (101.2 mph EV).
Making his mark 🔥Brandon Valenzuela's first MLB hit in his FIRST MLB at-bat!
Mind you Valenzuela struck out twice going 1 for 3 on the day but none the less, there is plenty to get excited about.
Valenzuela looking like the backup catcher of the future
Valenzuela had a strong Spring Training, slashing .304/.370/.478 with a home run in 27 plate appearances, with an 11.1 BB% and 25.9 K% for a 119 wRC+.
More interestingly, Valenzuela had the second-highest average exit velocity on the Blue Jays, only behind Kirk.
Brandon Valenzuela just eviscerated a baseball. One of the loudest cracks of the bat I've heard all spring from anybody. His raw power continues to be on display as he puts up an extremely *LOUD* camp.104.2 MPH/406 FT 🔊up for this one.
Where Valenzuela stands out is behind the plate. In the minor leagues Valenzuela threw out 33 base runners on 98 attempts, a 33.7 CS%.
If Valenzuela can hit at a league average level, that’s just a bonus for the Blue Jays.
He’s likely their backup of the future, so hopefully he can have a good showing until Kirk’s return.
Also read on Blue Jays Central :
Toronto Blue Jays outfielder Addison Barger exits game vs White Sox with ankle injury
Toronto Blue Jays outfielder Addison Barger exits game vs White Sox with ankle injury
| POLL | ||
AVRIL 5|170 ANSWERS Brandon Valenzuela MLB debut lone Blue Jays bright spot in disastrous weekend sweep Do you think Brandon Valenzuela is the Toronto Blue Jays backup catcher of the future? | ||
| Yes | 98 | 57.6 % |
| No | 26 | 15.3 % |
| Too early to tell | 46 | 27.1 % |
| List of polls | ||