‘The ideal fit’: Blue Jays GM Atkins sees Varsho as primary left fielder
Toronto Blue Jays common supervisor Ross Atkins expects newcomer Daulton Varsho to spend most of his time taking part in left area in 2023.
Atkins spoke to reporters on Saturday, lower than 24 hours after buying the left-handed hitting Varsho in a commerce with the Arizona Diamondbacks for catching prospect Gabriel Moreno and outfielder Lourdes Gurriel Jr.
“The impact he’s going to have on our team is going to be on every side of the ball, the base-running impact, the speed, the versatility, elite defence, and the fact he can also catch for us is about as good a fit as we possibly could have found,” Atkins stated. “It is the ideal fit for this roster and one we are very excited about.”
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Varsho didn’t play any left area for the Diamondbacks final yr. He began 61 video games in proper area, 42 in centre, 18 as a catcher and 15 as a delegated hitter.
Atkins stated Varsho additionally might be an choice as a catcher behind Danny Jansen and Alejandro Kirk.
George Springer and Kevin Kiermaier determine to be Toronto’s different main outfielders.
“From a persona and teammate standpoint, he’s a hard-nosed gamer that loves the method, loves the work,” Atkins stated of Varsho.
A defensively gifted participant, Varsho will get distinctive reads on fly balls and chases them down with highlight-reel diving catches. In 2022, he led all MLB outfielders with 18 outs above common and at age 26 he’s nonetheless very a lot in his prime.
“It would be hard for him to be better as a defender,” Atkins stated.
Both outgoing gamers have been worldwide signing success tales for the Blue Jays. Signed out of Cuba in November of 2016, Gurriel Jr. batted .285/.329/.468 in 5 seasons with Toronto – good for an OPS+ of 117. Like Gurriel Jr., Moreno was additionally signed as an infielder earlier than changing to catcher. A lifetime .310 hitter within the minor leagues, he now ranks among the many sport’s prime prospects at age 22.
Varsho hit 27 dwelling runs final yr on his strategy to a .235/.302/.443 batting line in a career-high 592 plate appearances. A left-handed hitter, Varsho strikes out greater than common (24.5 per cent strikeout price) whereas additionally discovering extra barrels than common (10.2 per cent barrel price).
“To purchase a participant of this calibre, one of many higher gamers within the sport final yr, you’re going to need to be uncomfortable. Including Lourdes Gurriel within the deal was troublesome for us however obligatory from their finish,” Atkins stated.
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Atkins stated the Blue Jays took requires potential offers on all three of their catchers.
“I’ve never been in a situation like his, where we had so much interest in all of the catchers. Every single catcher had significant interest from every team,” Atkins stated. “That put is in a strong position to look for a more ideal fit and not just a good value deal. We were able to do it.”
Atkins stated the Blue Jays really feel they’ve made main strides in run prevention by including Varsho and Kiermaier. The Blue Jays additionally signed a right-handed starter in Chris Bassitt as they give the impression of being to take one other step after dropping within the wild-card spherical this yr.
“I think our heavy lifting is done. But certainly not ruling anything out and would expect some incremental improvements,” Atkins stated.
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