Toronto Blue Jays: Devon Travis and his Injury Complications

With another knee injury to start the year, Devon Travis is inching closer to returning to game ready status. Will that return be for the Toronto Blue Jays?

Toronto Blue Jays infielder Devon Travis is starting to become a case of ‘what could have been if he wasn’t injured’.

Marred by numerous injuries over his time with the Toronto Blue Jays, Travis is seeing his spot on the roster disappear with bench/utility players playing well and prospects coming through the organization vying for his 2B position.

This is kind of unfortunate, given that Travis was given the keys to second base and just could never unlock the potential of being an everyday player when he debuted with the team in 2015.

In his debut season, Travis would finish the year on the 60 day IL due to surgery on his shoulder after battling shoulder inflammation earlier in the season.

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He would undergo a second operation in the same shoulder, with the procedure consisting of screwing down an extra bone. He would not start the 2016 season with the team in order to recover and rehab the injury.

He would return to the team in May and would play with the team until injuring his knee late in the season.

He would take part in the Wild Card game and one game in the ALDS before injuring his knee and missing the rest of the series. He would only play one game in the ALCS before being dropped from the roster due to the knee injury, rendering him ineligible for the remainder of the postseason.

What would follow the 2016 playoffs was a revolving door of injuries to both knees, cumulating in two surgeries in late 2016 and mid-2017.

He would play the most games of his career in 2018, suiting up for 103 games and slashing .232/.275/.381 with 11 home runs and 44 RBI. This season was only impacted by a brief stint in the minors due to poor performance to begin the season.

He would begin the 2019 season on the 60-day IL with another knee injury, and won’t be eligible to return until late May if rehab goes well.

The injury to start 2019 was probably the worst timed injury of them all, as this year is when multiple infield prospects within the organization are going to be knocking at the major league door.

This will really impact Travis’s ability to make the roster when he becomes healthy, and there may not be room for him on the team even in a bench role due to players like Eric Sogard and Brandon Drury playing well in their expanded roles.

I truly do feel bad for Travis, in that these injuries have really halted a career that could have easily made him an everyday player at the MLB level. He has the power and defensive ability to make it as a second baseman and was showing promise on the team when he was healthy.

I think when Travis returns from the IL, he may be destined for AAA just due to the lack of playing time availability.

In an ideal situation, Travis needs to return from the IL and just play wherever he is put, whether it be on the active roster or in the minor leagues.

The Blue Jays could potentially find a trade partner for the infielder, but this is less than likely. Considering the Jays did trade Kendrys Morales, anything is possible, and a trade could help Travis get more playing time at the major league level.

I do hope Travis can regain the form that made him one of the organizations top prospects when he does return from injury.

It may not be with the Toronto Blue Jays, but he has enough potential that another team may give him the shot he deserves, as long as he can stay healthy.