TORONTO -- George Springer left Saturday's 3-2 loss to the Mets in clear pain after slamming into the Citi Field wall in the eighth inning, a worrying moment after the veteran has been one of the Blue Jays¡¯ best stories early this season.
The good news, for now? Springer¡¯s early diagnosis is simply lower back spasms and the Blue Jays don¡¯t expect an MRI will be needed. It didn¡¯t look like good news at the time, though.
¡°We¡¯ll see how he is tomorrow, but it seems like it is all muscular right now,¡± manager John Schneider said.
The game-tying Jesse Winker triple sent Springer back towards the wall and he was initially looking over his left shoulder. As he reached the track, though, Springer twisted to track the ball over his right shoulder as he reached into the air to make the play, but collided awkwardly with the fence.
Springer finished out the play, but immediately went down as the Blue Jays¡¯ trainer bolted from the third-base dugout to right field. Springer remained down on the field as he spoke with the trainer, and even as he began to walk into the dugout, he needed to stop at one point in the shallow outfield to collect himself. He walked the rest of the way with his right arm slung over Schneider.
¡°It was weird, between the padding and the fence there. He hit it weird,¡± Schneider said. ¡°I¡¯m glad he got up and threw it, to be honest with you, but I think he hit the wall weird and the conditions definitely didn¡¯t help.¡±
There¡¯s no such thing as good timing for an injury, but this is particularly difficult given how Springer has been playing. He¡¯s batting .379 with a 1.076 OPS and the encouraging signs go well beyond the surface numbers. After a difficult 2024 season and a quiet spring, Springer has looked completely reenergized, embracing his new spot in the lineup as he bounces around the outfield.
The Blue Jays aren¡¯t short on outfield depth, with Anthony Santander, Alan Roden and Davis Schneider all available in the corners. Roden, in particular, has been impressive and the rookie continues to give Schneider reasons to write his name on the lineup card each night. Joey Loperfido and Addison Barger are available from Triple-A Buffalo, as well.