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Blue Jays players having a disappointing spring

Ezequiel Carrera was very happy to get his first hit of the spring, a triple
Ezequiel Carrera was very happy to get his first hit of the spring, a triple
Kim Klement-USA TODAY Sports

I was looking through the Jays spring numbers, and I was surprised that very few of the Blue Jays are having poor springs. Now the player with the most disappointing spring is Marcus Stroman, but let's look at a few of the guys who have put up poor stats, to this point, in the spring.

The ones having troubles this spring:

  • Ezequiel Carrera: Hitting just .065/.171/.129, finally getting his first hits of the spring the other day. With Michael Saunders likely missing the start of the season, there was an opening for 4th outfielder and I figured Ezequiel was the guy. He hasn't grabbed it yet, but he's still in camp.
  • Maicer Izturis: .125/.263/.188 in just 16 at bats. The favorite, going into camp, to win the second base job and, going in, the first mentioned 'greatest shape of his life', wasn't hitting and then got injured. I don't know much about groin injuries, but don't think generally happen to players that aren't in the best shape of their lives? There were thoughts, before the injury, that he wasn't even going to make the team, with many thinking Devon Travis was taking the second base job and that Ryan Goins was a better choice for utility infielder, since Goins would be far better as a defensive replacement and with questions about Maicer's range at short and second.
  • Justin Smoak/Daric Barton: Two guys 'competing' for the first base job, hitting .156/.250/.375 and .200/.314/.267 respectively. They have less than two weeks left to impress, or we are likely to see Edwin at first base and Dioner Navarro DHing. The two home runs by Justin on Saturday made me feel much better about him.
  • Russell Martin has had a bit of a slow start with the bat, hitting .207/.324/.345, getting his first home run yesterday. I'm not worried about his bat, he should be spending most of his time getting used to the pitchers he'll be catching.
  • Dioner Navarro: He isn't hitting that badly, .273/.360/.318, actually pretty decent numbers, but what is disappointing is that he hasn't caught much, because of sore knees. I think he has to catch some to get other teams interested in trading for him. If I was the GM of another team, looking for a catcher, I'd want to see that he could catch 3 or 4 days in a role, before I offered anything for him. I'd also be worried that he looks a little bigger than last year. He wasn't exactly athletic behind the plate last year, if he's a few pounds heavier, that likely won't help. I hope Alex can trade him, I really don't want to get into the season with 3 catchers on the roster.

On the pitching side, we've been getting good pitching from most. Here are the ones not showing well, to this point:

  • Marco Estrada: 9.39 ERA, in 7.2 innings. He's allow 12 hits, 2 home runs, 1 walk, 5 strikeouts. Most of the bad numbers came from one really bad relief appearance, where he gave up 7 hits and 7 earned while getting just 2 outs, against the Rays, back on March 12th. I'd like him to finish spring strong and make it a tougher decision for who gets the 5th starter spot. Or, on the flip side, make us feel comfortable with him in the pen.
  • Wilton Lopez: 10.13 ERA in 5.1 innings. Allowed 6 hits, 6 earned, 1 home run, 3 walks with 5 strikeouts. I thought he was almost sure to make the team but he pitched his way to earning an early cut, having already been sent to the minor league camp.
  • Chad Jenkins: 7.50 ERA in 6.0 innings. Allowed 8 hits, 5 earned, 1 home run, 1 walk, 1 hit batter, 7 strikeouts. Likely to be on the Buffalo/Toronto shuttle, he hasn't looked great in any appearance, though he struck out the side in the 9th yesterday.
  • Jeff Francis: 7.71 ERA in 4.2 innings. Allowed 8 hits, 1 home run, 1 walk, 5 strikeouts. Was a long shot for the 3rd lefty role, but it isn't going to happen.

Whose poor spring numbers surprise/worry you the most?