The Toronto Blue Jays finally signed a star player after a slew of whiffs, inking Anthony Santander on a five-year, $92.5 million deal. No, Santander was not Shohei Ohtani or Juan Soto, but he was, at the very least, a proven slugger who was sure to provide a boost to the Blue Jays' lineup in a big way. Well, at least that's what we thought. The veteran got off to a sluggish start to his Blue Jays tenure, and just landed on the IL with left shoulder inflammation.
Santander landing on the IL isn't much of a shock. He hurt his shoulder in early May, and while he was playing through it, he clearly wasn't 100 percent. Placing him on the IL gives him an opportunity to reset physically and mentally.
While it's hard to say that placing Santander on the IL was the wrong decision for the Blue Jays to have made, it does add insult to an already existing injury. The Santander signing simply hasn't aged well.
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Anthony Santander signing already looked bad before IL stint
It was easy to see why the Jays signed Santander. Sure, he might not hit for a high average, and might be a poor defender, but when Santander does make contact, the ball usually goes a long way. He launched 44 home runs last season and averaged 35 home runs and 95 RBI in the previous three seasons. He was expected to add some much-needed power to a Blue Jays lineup that ranked 26th in home runs last season.
Santander hasn't done that at all, in the first 50 games of his Blue Jays tenure. The 30-year-old is slashing .179/.273/.304 with six home runs and 18 RBI. He has two fewer homers than Daulton Varsho despite playing in more than double the games. He has as many home runs as George Springer, who has looked lost for much of May.
To make matters worse, Santander has been one of the worst position players in the majors overall. His 66 WRC+ has him tied for 156th out of 169 qualified position players. His -0.8 fWAR is good for 165th out of those same 169 players.
Blue Jays' $92-million backup plan has a lot to prove, but not until he's 100 percent
It would've been one thing for a player who has been on the team for several years to get off to an abysmal start, but it's another thing entirely for a player who just signed a $92 million contract to be struggling like this in his first year with the team, especially after the Jays whiffed on so many other high-end free agents.
Blue Jays fans have been waiting for his eventual breakout, but now that he's on the IL, it's anyone's best guess as to when he'll even be back in Toronto's lineup and how he'll look when he ultimately returns to action.
The Blue Jays have been able to hang around the AL Wild Card race thanks in large part to a lackluster American League, but it's hard to fully buy into this team if Santander can't get it going. Vladimir Guerrero Jr. and Bo Bichette can't do it all offensively. Hopefully, Santander can emerge from this IL stint 100 percent healthy and looking like the All-Star he once was. Blue Jays fans probably won't believe it until they see him do it, though.