The Toronto Blue Jays continue to shake up their lineup in hopes of generating more offense. Catcher Danny Jansen was slotted in to bat second on Monday. This was the first time in his career that he ever hit in this spot. This decision paid off, as Jansen hit a 2-run home run in the seventh inning Monday afternoon to give the Blue Jays a 7-3 lead against the Chicago White Sox. They eventually won 9-3, with Jansen driving in five runs.
This afternoon, Danny Jansen will bat second in the order for the first time in his career. #TOTHECORE pic.twitter.com/7Hx7pilY4U
— BlueJays Muse (@BlueJays_Muse) May 20, 2024
Danny Jansen Moves Up to Bat Second in Lineup
Danny Jansen pads the lead for the @BlueJays! pic.twitter.com/FSCLPGhee4
— MLB (@MLB) May 20, 2024
Jansen has been playing well since coming off the IL. He has five home runs and a batting average of .333. He went up 20 points in his batting average since May 18th. When Jansen remains healthy, he’s certainly a strong player to have in the lineup. He has the potential to hit 30 home runs in a season if he had no injuries. Since August last year, Davis Schneider and Jansen have been the team’s two best grip-it-and-rip-it bats. Adjustments are crucial in baseball, and the Blue Jays shuffling up their lineup is working lately. Players will go through hitting droughts, and moving hotter hitters to the top of the lineup makes sense. It’s impressive to see the hitter that Jansen has become. He hasn’t been over-coached, and he’s made confident decisions. He’s one of the top offensive catchers in baseball.
Well Deserved Move
Jansen is currently the only player on the team with a batting average over .300, and when you’re hitting well, you ought to be rewarded. It was a timely decision to move Jansen to the second-hitting spot, as he has been successful against the White Sox. In 28 at-bats against them, he has 12 hits, five home runs, 11 RBIs, a .316 batting average, and a 1.061 OPS. That’s over one home run every seven at-bats. It took Jansen playing at a 9.8 fWar/650 PA pace for him to finally slot into the top of the lineup. Jansen has continued to show why he is an important piece of the Blue Jays lineup.
When Jansen is up at the plate, he always looks so calm and composed and is not the type of hitter to chase pitches outside the zone. Adley Rutschman looks like the top offensive catcher in the American League right now, with Jansen in a close second. If Jansen had been active the whole season, it would definitely be a toss-up. It’s time for the Blue Jays to extend Jansen. Toronto has now won back-to-back games and is looking to make it three with the second game of the series against the White Sox coming on Tuesday.
Photo Credit: © Nick Turchiaro-USA TODAY Sports
