From humble Blue Jays start to 100-plus homers, Kevin Pillar still defying odds

TORONTO – The 100^th profession dwelling run for Kevin Pillar, a pinch-hit drive within the eighth inning May 6 to provide Atlanta a 5-4 win over the Baltimore Orioles, triggered a flood of reminiscences for the 34-year-old outfielder. 

Being chosen within the 32^nd spherical of the 2011 draft by the Toronto Blue Jays. Overcoming lengthy odds to climb up the organizational ladder. Learning laborious classes and successful over coaches and participant growth workers. Breaking via and establishing himself within the majors. Two unforgettable journeys to the post-season. A gutting commerce amid an organizational reset. The collection of vagabond seasons culminating with the fulfilment of a childhood dream to play for his hometown Los Angeles Dodgers. The stunning harm that quickly after prompted him to contemplate strolling away. Finding the dedication to maintain going. A brand new alternative from an outdated backer in Atlanta president of baseball operations and GM Alex Anthopoulos. A subsequent milestone.

.acf-block-preview .br-video-thumbnail::earlier than {
content material: “”;
place: absolute;
prime: 45%;
left: 50%;
remodel: translate3d(-50%, -50%, 0);
-moz-transform: translate3d(-50%, -50%, 0);
-ms-transform: translate3d(-50%, -50%, 0);
-o-transform: translate3d(-50%, -50%, 0);
-webkit-transform: translate3d(-50%, -50%, 0);
width: 20px;
top: 0px;
border-top: 14px stable clear;
border-left: 22px stable #fff;
border-bottom: 14px stable clear;
margin-left: 3px;
}

“I know to a lot of people 100 homers is an insignificant number,” Pillar says throughout a weekend faceoff between his seventh and first golf equipment, “but to me, it was a huge accomplishment. And then the way it happened was just a cherry on top. Part of it, too, is anytime you go to a new organization, you’re kind of looking for a moment that people remember, your teammates remember to feel part of the organization, to cement yourself in. It was a really cool moment. I’m not done. I’ve still got some more things I’d like to accomplish individually, 1,000 hits, 100 stolen bases (he’s at 952 and 94), and most importantly, the main reason I’m here is I want to win a World Series.”

With Atlanta, he’s definitely on a crew that has an opportunity to do this, even after a Toronto Blue Jays sweep of the NL East leaders over the weekend. Pillar went 1-for-4 with a homer and a stroll in his sole look of the collection, Sunday’s 6-5 walk-off loss, capping off an emotional journey again north. 

His first go to to Rogers Centre as an opponent, some three weeks after his jarring first-week-of-the-season commerce to the San Francisco Giants in 2019, “gave me closure, gave me a sense of peace.” Since then, his profession has taken a lot of twists and turns, every underlining the grit he’s wanted to hold within the sport so lengthy, amassing components of 11 seasons and 1,055 video games.

.acf-block-preview .br-video-thumbnail::earlier than {
content material: “”;
place: absolute;
prime: 45%;
left: 50%;
remodel: translate3d(-50%, -50%, 0);
-moz-transform: translate3d(-50%, -50%, 0);
-ms-transform: translate3d(-50%, -50%, 0);
-o-transform: translate3d(-50%, -50%, 0);
-webkit-transform: translate3d(-50%, -50%, 0);
width: 20px;
top: 0px;
border-top: 14px stable clear;
border-left: 22px stable #fff;
border-bottom: 14px stable clear;
margin-left: 3px;
}

Staring up on the Rogers Centre rafters, he says, “I still get goose bumps looking up at the banners we were able to put up here,” celebrating the 2015 AL East crown and 2016 wild-card victory, “and know how close we were to winning the ultimate prize.”

Coming again seven years later, “the best way to describe it is distance makes the heart grow fonder,” Pillar says. “It almost feels like a dream, like a distant memory until you come back. This was obviously circled on my calendar. Then you land and … I just think about all the amazing things we were able to accomplish here and it’s always nice to be reminded of really magical times in my life.”

And the journey, too. 

As a 32^nd-round decide, his leash within the system was quick, so he wanted to impress instantly, which he did. Pillar posted a .911 OPS over 60 video games in rookie-level Bluefield out of the draft after which an .813 mark in 2012 between low-A Lansing and high-A Dunedin. 

Blue Jays supervisor John Schneider crossed paths with him throughout minor-league spring coaching again then and remembers that whereas Pillar “was always getting hits,” extra impactful was that “you see him play every day and he helps you win.”

“You really appreciated the competitor he is, the defender he is, the base-runner that he is –  it’s just a complete baseball player. That’s why it was easy to pull for a guy like that. There are a lot of coaches, myself included, that really had his back in the minor leagues.”

.acf-block-preview .br-video-thumbnail::earlier than {
content material: “”;
place: absolute;
prime: 45%;
left: 50%;
remodel: translate3d(-50%, -50%, 0);
-moz-transform: translate3d(-50%, -50%, 0);
-ms-transform: translate3d(-50%, -50%, 0);
-o-transform: translate3d(-50%, -50%, 0);
-webkit-transform: translate3d(-50%, -50%, 0);
width: 20px;
top: 0px;
border-top: 14px stable clear;
border-left: 22px stable #fff;
border-bottom: 14px stable clear;
margin-left: 3px;
}

Also amongst them was Kenny Graham, his hitting coach at Bluefield in 2011 and Lansing in 2012 who’s now the director of participant growth for the Detroit Tigers. Pillar says Graham “probably had the biggest influence on my career” as a result of “I had a lot of moments of immaturity with him and he didn’t shy away from teaching moments.”

The actual circumstances that triggered one of many extra lasting classes someday with Lansing are hazy – one thing like a nasty at-bat late in an 0-for-4 day amid a down week. But Pillar remembers throwing his helmet and batting gloves within the dugout, muttering how he’s “an automatic out” after which not seeing his gear as soon as the sport was over. 

“I’m already upset and finally found my stuff in the trash can,” says Pillar. “I come in (to the clubhouse), guns blazing, like who did this? He didn’t shy away. He said, ‘It was me. What are you going to do about it?’ Am I going to fight the coach? No. But I always remember that teaching me a valuable lesson of riding out the waves of emotions in this game. He was one of the early guys that opened up some eyes of guys at the higher level and then Alex and the front office and (then manager John Gibbons) to at least put me on the map.”

Pillar debuted in 2013, was up and down that yr and the following, when he at one level was demoted after throwing his batting gloves when Gibbons pinch-hit for him in a sport. Then in 2015, he seized the on a regular basis job in centre discipline from Dalton Pompey. A near-reckless dedication led to a collection of extra electrifying performs within the outfield, placing him persistently within the working for Gold Gloves with one other participant with an identical backstory, 2010 31^st-round decide Kevin Kiermaier.

“I always remember that,” Kiermaier says of how each have been drafted late. “And I’ve always appreciated the way he goes about it and how hard he plays the game. He’s shown that he’s prepared to do whatever it takes to win. Put his body on the line. And I always root for trying to go for guys like him. I appreciate the guys like myself who weren’t top prospects, guys just laying in the weeds and as time went on, did the little things right and we were both able to make a career playing this game when the odds are probably against us. It’s a beautiful thing.”

Another stunning factor for Pillar was becoming a member of the Dodgers on a minor-league deal final yr after which being known as as much as be a part of them on the finish of May. In his fourth sport, he discovered aid and pleasure in accumulating his first hit for his boyhood crew, however the story turned for him later that outing, when he slid into third base and broke his left shoulder socket. Surgery that was anticipated to finish his season adopted and “there was a moment that I wasn’t sure that I still wanted to play anymore,” he says. “Getting a little bit older and having young kids and going through a serious shoulder injury. It made me question what I really wanted to do.”

During rehab, Pillar spoke with Dodgers GM Brandon Gomes about what his future would possibly appear to be. Gomes prompt that if he wasn’t capable of play once more that season, he ought to think about winter ball to show himself once more earlier than re-entering the market. Instead, Pillar sped via his restoration to look in six video games with triple-A Oklahoma City, labored via some intrasquad video games at Dodger Stadium and skilled “a moment of clarity of, what else would I rather be doing than this?”

“I proved to myself I could still play at this level,” he says. “There are very few guys that get to go out on their own terms, and I just didn’t want what I felt like was a pretty good career to end on injury.”

Over the winter, Pillar instructed groups that he wasn’t seeking to be triple-A depth, that he wished a reputable alternative to win a big-league job. Eventually, Anthopoulos introduced him with one and he’s embraced life as a right-handed bat off the bench.

“He believed that I could still be an asset to this team,” he says. “I instructed Alex like, ‘Yes, I still want to play every day, if you run me out there, I’m going to be prepared to do it. But I’m also mature enough and understanding that I can play this role and I want opportunities to do it because I’ve seen guys prolong their career being able to hit left-handed pitching, play good defence in the outfield.’ I used to be grateful he gave me a possibility. …

“If I am able to do it well, who knows how many more years I can get out of this?”

Given his journey, a couple of would possibly anticipate.

More from Sportsnet

Blue Jays vs. Yankees Series Preview: AL East race set to warmth up

Blue Jays’ rising ‘killer intuition’ on full show in collection sweep of Braves

.acf-block-preview .br-related-links-wrapper {
show: grid;
grid-template-columns: repeat(2, 1fr);
hole: 20px;
}

.acf-block-preview .br-related-links-wrapper a {
pointer-events: none;
cursor: default;
text-decoration: none;
colour: black;
}