Toronto Blue Jays outfielder George Springer rises to the occasion time and time again
Photo credit: https://www.mlb.com/
Toronto Blue Jays outfielder George Springer delivered the swing of the season Tuesday in the seventh inning of a 12-5 drubbing of the New York Yankees. A grand slam that shook Rogers Centre in a way we haven't seen in a long, long time.
Springer's home run was his second of the day, a towering shot that hung up in the air just long enough to add to the drama.
Springer knew it, though. He's hit 274 of these and now 100 with the Blue Jays.
With his grand slam in the seventh inning, Springer has his 100th home run as a Blue Jay 💥
It wasn't long ago that George Springer had his difficulties, like the entire 2024 injury plagued season and this spring.
He was awful at the plate in Spring Training this year, but still healthy and when the media would ask him why he was scuffling so much, he'd say "I don't know but I feel great."
Late in Spring Training, I walked up to George Springer in Sarasota one day and told him that I was writing about his bad spring coming off a rough 2024. He got it, but then said: «I feel great, actually.» It surprised me a bit at the time but George was right.
A lot of fans (myself included) were starting to think that age and injuries were catching up to him and this may be the twilight of his tenure in Toronto.
However, since John Schneider has kept him in the DH spot most of the year he has remained healthy and very productive. Perhaps productive is an understatement.
John Schneider has always stood firmly behind George Springer, even when that hasn't been popular. He said post-game today that «it's easy» given who Springer is and what he's accomplished in this league.
«You never stop believing in him and it's paying off right now.»
«You never stop believing in him and it's paying off right now.»
«What he did today was pretty amazing. It was kind of a special feeling,» manager John Schneider said. «That's a really good reliever in [the Yankees' Luke] Weaver, and it's just an awesome swing. He was pumped up. The whole dugout was.»
Strolling out of the box, Springer ditched his bat and started to skip up the line.
His feet barely touched the ground as he rounded the bases, bouncing and dancing as he howled along with the sellout crowd, all whipped into a red frenzy on Canada Day.
By the time Springer stomped on home plate to join everyone else, he nearly ripped Tyler Heineman's shoulder out of its socket with a high five.
«He's the guy you saw today who can completely take over a game,» Kevin Gausman said. «When he's locked in, he can do that for an entire series and take over a whole series. He's got every talent in the book. It's still in there. He's still the player he was in Houston.»
Kevin Gausman on George Springer: «He just has a crazy ability to rise up to the occasion.»
The Blue Jays' 12-5 win brings them within one game of the Yankees in the AL East. This stadium, perhaps this entire organization, feels alive again.
| POLL | ||
JUILLET 1 | 154 ANSWERS Toronto Blue Jays outfielder George Springer rises to the occasion time and time again Did you think George Springer would rebound like this from his below average, injury plagued 2024 season? | ||
| Yes | 91 | 59.1 % |
| No | 63 | 40.9 % |
| List of polls | ||
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