The Toronto Blue Jays have lost yet another important player to injury. Leadoff hitter George Springer suffered a fractured left big toe during Saturday afternoon’s game against the Minnesota Twins (MIN 7, TOR 4), the team announced. He will go for a CT scan to determine the severity of the injury.
“He’s getting a CT scan right now. Initial x-ray on left big toe showed a probable small fracture,” manager John Schneider said after Saturday’s game. “… We all signed up for this and it’s not going to be easy. And I think if any team knows that, it’s us. We’ve been through a lot over the past couple years, and you have to take it as a challenge.”
Springer suffered the injury when he fouled a pitch into his toe in the third inning. He stayed in to finish the at-bat, grounded out to third base, and ran gingerly down to first base. In the lineup as the designated hitter, Springer was replaced by a pinch-hitter for his next at-bat.
According to the Baseball Prospectus Recovery Dashboard, hitters with a fractured big toe have missed anywhere from two to six weeks, depending on the severity of the fracture. If it’s a hairline fracture, Springer could return before the end of the month. If it’s a more significant fracture, he will be sidelined well into May.
Springer is a full-time DH these days. Not having to play the field could hasten his return.
Blue Jays besieged by injuries
The reigning American League champions have been hit extremely hard by injuries. Most notably, All-Star catcher Alejandro Kirk will miss six weeks after breaking his thumb last week. Toronto is also without Addison Barger (ankle) and Anthony Santander (shoulder), and that’s just on the position player side. Here are their starting pitching injuries:
Yesavage is currently on a minor-league rehab assignment and will make at least one more rehab start. The team will then decide the next step. Berríos has begun facing hitters in live batting practice and is nearing a rehab assignment. Bieber is expected to begin throwing off a mound this weekend and is further behind.
Because of those injuries, the Blue Jays signed veteran lefty Patrick Corbin and inserted him directly into the rotation this week without a minor-league tune-up start. Max Scherzer, who exited his last start with forearm tendinitis, is expected to start Sunday. It is mid-April and the Blue Jays are already pushing the limits of their depth.
Springer, 36, was off to a slow start this season, taking a .189/.283/.377 line into Saturday’s game. Last season, he set new career highs in batting average (.309) and on-base percentage (.390), and posted his second-highest slugging percentage (.560). This is the final year of his six-year, $150 million contract.
Saturday’s loss dropped the Blue Jays to 6-8 on the season. They have the second-worst run differential in baseball (minus-20).