5 Bold Predictions for the Toronto Blue Jays in Spring Training

5. Pompey starts in left field

It may not and likely won’t happen right out of camp, but at some point during the 2016 season, Dalton Pompey will take over full-time duties in left field for the Blue Jays. Michael Saunders has been irrelevant since Toronto acquired him and he’s extremely injury prone.

Both native Canadians will fight for the job in Spring Training and Saunders may win it out of the gate due to experience, but Pompey’s tools are more valuable than Saunders’.

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Saunders is a left-handed bat, but Pompey switch hits and brings far more speed to the base paths and in the outfield than Saunders. Since trading away Ben Revere, Toronto lacks a true 40-plus base stealing threat. Pompey knows he can be that guy for the Jays. It’s just a matter of making enough contact and getting on base. Following a 2015 demotion, he hit .351/.405/.545 over 31 Double-A games and .285/.372/.356 in Triple-A across 65, positive omens for Toronto.

Pompey is only 23 and will be a bottom of the order bat for now, but so too will Saunders, and he turns 30 in November. Toronto will be better served developing and investing their time into having Pompey in the lineup long-term. He’s potentially under contract until 2022, whereas Saunders is eligible for free agency following this season.

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