SARASOTA, Fla. — Asked to describe his whirlwind past few days and the trade that landed him in Toronto Blue Jays camp, Matt Chapman scanned his new surroundings at the club’s player development complex in Dunedin.
“Is today Friday?” the new Jays third baseman asked honestly. “I think I found out Wednesday. It happened in a flash.”
That’s how most around baseball feel these days, as a hectic week post-lockout has produced blockbuster trades, signings, and, oh yeah, baseball games started Friday, too. The Jays were busy packing the bus for a trip to Sarasota to face the Baltimore Orioles in the Grapefruit League opener as Chapman was talking to the media.
A lot has been happening and the Jays have been right in the thick of it all.
While the driving force behind the Chapman trade was his all-world glove and filling a gaping hole at third base, there are questions surrounding what kind of impact he can have with the bat.
Questions that Chapman is eager to start answering another year removed from September 2020 hip surgery.
“Last year was a tough year for me,” Chapman said. “Coming off that hip surgery in 2020, I just wasn’t quite as strong as I wanted to be. And there’s never enough time to get ready for a season when you’re rehabbing like that after a shortened off-season with my hip.
“I learned a lot from last season and learned what will make me successful and what adjustments I needed to make. I got strong again, first things first. I learned how to get into using my back hip and stay behind the baseball again. I feel a lot like I did in 2018 and 2019, physically healthy.”
That should be music to the Jays’ front office’s ears, and something that must be factored in to
his down numbers over the past two seasons.
Chapman had his best years in 2018 and 2019, hitting 36 home runs in 2019, but more importantly producing the lowest strikeout rate of his career at 21.9 per cent.
It’s been well over 30 per cent the past two years, sapping some of the value Chapman brings to the table.
There’s an obvious combo of power and patience with Chapman, but it’s been a couple of years since he’s been a true impact player with the bat.
Playing at less than 100 per cent could be the reason for that.
“I think this year you’re going to see a more athletic, well-rounded version of myself,” Chapman said.
In this lineup, Chapman won’t be relied upon in the heart of the order like he was in Oakland, and he realizes that.
“I think it’s such a deep lineup that’s capable of wearing down starting pitching and able to get into the bullpen and take long at-bats and if one guy doesn’t get the job done the next guy can come to the plate and take a good at-bat,” Chapman said. “It seems like a lineup that there’s not too much pressure on one specific guy because it’s a deep lineup and everybody just kind of does their part.”
But Chapman isn’t trying to be a role player, either.
If his bat rebounds to previous levels, he could end up being a vital part of one of the best offences in baseball.
“I still think that just because I’m maybe not hitting third or fourth doesn’t mean I don’t think I’m capable of doing that,” Chapman said. “But it is nice to know not all the pressure is on me or (Matt) Olson or somebody like that.
“We have such a deep lineup; I can just jump in and do my part.”
Chapman got to work right away Friday and will likely make his Blue Jays exhibition debut over the next few days as manager Charlie Montoyo works his veterans into the lineup with a shortened spring schedule.
Marcus Semien, a former teammate in Oakland, already gave Chapman a bit of a heads up on what to expect.
“He just told me that I’m going to love it and I’m going to love the guys and I can tell that he’s already right,” Chapman said.
His relationship with Bo Bichette on the left side of the infield is a work in progress, but there’s no doubting Chapman’s presence is a plus for the young shortstop.
“For me, I want to get to know Bo and what his strengths are defensively and where he likes to play,” Chapman said. “Being able to cover a lot of ground over there at third, I just want to help him out and hopefully he doesn’t have to take too many backhand plays.”
Even as Jays fans are dreaming of Jose Ramirez at second base, an infield of Vladimir Guerrero Jr., Chapman, Bichette and either Santiago Espinal or Cavan Biggio is pretty star-studded.
“I think this infield is amazing,” Chapman said. “We have so many talented players offensively and defensively, but I’ll leave the best-in-baseball to you guys. I think it’s worth putting us in that conversation and once we get to play with each other and get to know each other a little bit better, who knows what’s possible.”
https://news.google.com/__i/rss/rd/articles/CBMiZ2h0dHBzOi8vd3d3LnRzbi5jYS9zY290dC1taXRjaGVsbC1tYXR0LWNoYXBtYW4tYXJyaXZlcy1hdC1ibHVlLWpheXMtY2FtcC13aXRoLXBsZW50eS10by1wcm92ZS0xLjE3NzI4ODDSAW9odHRwczovL3d3dy50c24uY2Evc2NvdHQtbWl0Y2hlbGwtbWF0dC1jaGFwbWFuLWFycml2ZXMtYXQtYmx1ZS1qYXlzLWNhbXAtd2l0aC1wbGVudHktdG8tcHJvdmUtMS4xNzcyODgwP3Rzbi1hbXA?oc=5
2022-03-18 19:41:24Z
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