Blue Jays: Derek Fisher and Anthony Alford, one gets voted off the island
The Toronto Blue Jays have a full outfield and two former highly-touted prospects will battle this spring for one of the last roster spots.
Toronto Blue Jays fans will be keeping a close eye on spring training this year as a couple of once can’t miss talents compete for a reserve outfield spot. Derek Fisher and Anthony Alford are both out of options, meaning they would have to stay on the team’s 26-man roster or risk going through waivers before being optioned to the minors.
The starting outfield is all but set with Lourdes Gurriel Jr, Toescar Hernandez, and Randal Grichuk manning their positions respectively. The Jays most likely won’t carry five outfielders to begin the season so either Fisher or Alford will be left off the major league roster. Depending on how they hit this spring they could both be left out in the cold.
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Fisher has the most seasoning of the two, a veteran of 152 big league games split between the Houston Astros and Blue Jays. Fisher fell down the depth chart in Houston and became expendable with the emergence of Kyle Tucker. A rare combination of speed and power Fisher has not been able to put together a string of good at-bats in his chances at the highest level, hitting for a career average of just .191.
Alford was a two-sport star, lining up in the defensive backfield for the University of Mississippi, before deciding to focus solely on baseball. In very limited time at the big-league level, he has hit a paltry .145 in parts of three seasons. Staying healthy has been a concern as Alford has battled leg issues and reoccurring symptoms stemming from concussions.
Billy McKinney and Jonathan Davis are also on the 40-man roster and could compete for roster spots this spring, though they are also light hitting and not long-term solutions.
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Look for Derek Fisher to get hot this spring and win the job outright leaving the Toronto Blue Jays to part ways with Anthony Alford. Alford will be better off to go to a rebuilding team where he can receive regular at-bats and try to carve out a niche for himself as a platoon outfielder.