Toronto Blue Jays: Replacing Teoscar Hernandez is sure to be a nightmare

Replacing Teoscar Hernandez will not be an easy task for the Toronto Blue Jays.

Despite a handful of notable upgrades to the 2020 roster, picturing the Toronto Blue Jays as a playoff team required a bit of squinting.

There’s no denying that the organization has put themselves in a position to make a big run within the next year or two, but with the Tampa Bay Rays and New York Yankees still reigning supreme in the AL East, a playoff spot was going to be hard to come by.

That was until 2020 became the year of the unexplainable. With an expanded 16-team playoff field now in place and just three weeks left in the regular season, the Toronto Blue Jays find themselves in contention for a playoff spot and within earshot of an AL East title.

Unfortunately, recent injury news out of Toronto has suddenly placed a number of hurdles in front of the Blue Jays as they race towards the finish line.

According to Rob Longley of the Toronto Sun, Toronto Blue Jays outfielder Teoscar Hernandez is likely to miss a significant amount of time due to a recent rib injury.

Hernandez was on a tear before going down to injury, hitting .308 with a .358 OBP, 14 home runs, six doubles, and 27 RBI. After posting back-to-back seasons with strikeout rates between 31-33%, Hernandez had lowered his K-rate to around 28%, a near 5% drop from his 2019 campaign.

Per FanGraphs’ Wins Above Replacement, Hernandez had already surpassed his previous career-high, posting a 1.5 fWAR through 39 games this season.

In terms of American League rankings, only Mike Trout has more home runs (15), while Hernandez ranked third in ISO power (.329), fifth in wRC+ (164), and ranked eighth in fWAR.

Losing one of the premier offensive players in the league is a major blow to a Toronto Blue Jays team that was aggressive at this year’s trade deadline to help get them into the playoffs.

Now, the Blue Jays have to find a replacement for Teoscar Hernandez, and that won’t be easy.

Toronto Blue Jays have limited options to replace Teoscar Hernandez.

Derek Fisher is sure to see a majority of the playing time for Toronto, but Fisher has been less than stellar since joining the Blue Jays at last year’s trade deadline. Toronto gave up pitchers Aaron Sanchez and Joe Biagini, along with minor league outfielder Cal Stevenson for Fisher, a steep price to pay for the former first-round pick with plus-raw power and elite speed who hadn’t put it all together at the major league level yet.

But the upside with Fisher was there and if he ever clicks for Toronto, the Blue Jays have themselves a really good outfielder. Unfortunately, Fisher is running out of time.

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He hit just .161 with a 40% strikeout rate and 71 wRC+ in 40 games with Toronto last season and hasn’t fared much better in 2020. He’s currently hitting .200 with no home runs and eight strikeouts in 26 plate appearances. Fisher has been worth a combined -0.5 fWAR since becoming a Blue Jay.

The Blue Jays could also turn to 28-year-old outfielder Jonathan Davis. Davis is on the 40-man roster already and brings two admirable traits to the roster in his speed and defensive abilities. However, he has just 122 MLB plate appearances to his credit with a .185 career average and wRC+ of 44.

Neither option is going to come close to replacing the special year that Teoscar Hernandez is having, but the Blue Jays are going to have to rely on one of them making a difference over the final three weeks of the season.

The New York Yankees are reeling as injuries continue to pile up, dropping three-straight to the Baltimore Orioles over the weekend and falling to 8th place in the American League playoff standings. A playoff spot is still a real possibility for the Toronto Blue Jays, but it won’t be easy, especially if New York can close out the season on a high note.

Luckily for Toronto, Bo Bichette is expected to return to the lineup soon, hopefully providing a bit of a spark that this lineup will need.

Until then, all Toronto Blue Jays fans can do is hope that Fisher and/or Davis can do just enough to keep the team afloat. But that’s placing a lot of hope onto two options who have yet to prove they can be a reliable piece in the lineup.