Upton’s the right man for mashing lefties
On the occasion of their first trip to Toronto, the San Diego Padres are going to leave a legacy behind when their plane takes off on Wednesday evening.
The Toronto Blue Jays and Padres finalized a deal sending outfielder Melvin Upton Jr. to Toronto in exchange for short-season single-A pitcher Hansel Rodriguez. As part of the deal, the Padres are believed to be paying US$17 million of the US$22 million owed to Upton through 2017.
While GM Ross Atkins was unwilling to discuss the financials, if the $17-million figure is accurate, it means that after they pay him for the rest of this season, the Jays get Upton virtually free for 2017.
How Upton fits into the Toronto scheme remains to be seen. Atkins made it clear the vision from the front office is that Upton will be in a support role unless circumstances change.
“I would say that we have a very good outfield right now,” Atkins said. “It would likely take an injury for him to turn into an everyday outfielder with us. He could possibly play every day but that would mean coming in in the seventh inning and that would be up to Gibby (manager John Gibbons). Having someone who can spell all three of the outfielders and complement Zeke (Carrera) very well from a right-handed standpoint works well.”
Gibbons plans to find a way to get Upton’s bat in the lineup against most left-handed starters. On those days, first baseman Justin Smoak would sit, Edwin Encarnacion would be at first base and either Upton, Michael Saunders or Jose Bautista would be the DH. Against left-handed pitching this year, Upton has hit .282 with a .913 OPS.
He has played predominantly in centre field during his career but it’s expected he would see time in all three outfield spots with the Jays, operating more or less as a fourth outfielder. Upton has been an everyday player most of his career, so he will have to park his ego at least to start with in Toronto.
“I’m here to help this team, in whatever capacity I can,” Upton said. “I’ve been around for a little while and the main goal at this point in my career is to win a ring. Whatever I can do to help get this team to the point, I will do.”
Upton is a quality defender and his presence will no doubt relegate Ezequiel Carrera to fifth-outfielder status, yet Gibbons says he can still find a role for him as well.
As an offensive weapon, Upton has never quite lived up to his advance billing over the course of his 12-year career that started in Tampa Bay. He has a career .245 batting average with 1,512 strikeouts in 5,027 career at-bats.
He has some power, topping out at 28 home runs in 2012, his last year in Tampa Bay. His best asset is speed on the basepaths, a commodity that the Jays do not have, beyond Kevin Pillar and Carrera. This year, he has stolen 20 bases for the Padres and figures to add some value in that area. He also has 16 home runs and, given the friendlier confines of the Rogers Centre as compared to cavernous Petco Park, he could be some help there.
Rodriguez, just 19, was in the Jays organization for three seasons. He is 2-1, with a 3.06 ERA this year at Bluefield of the Appalachian League. A native of the Dominican Republic, Rodriguez has a career record of 3-6, with a 4.61 ERA.