Blue Jays finalize position players heading into Opening Day

CLEARWATER, Fla. -- The Blue Jays are making good on their purpose to stay balanced offensively.

Toronto’s position-player roster is set for Opening Day, as manager John Schneider announced after Sunday’s 2-0 loss to the Phillies at BayCare Ballpark that Daniel Vogelbach, Ernie Clement and Davis Schneider grabbed the remaining spots to close out the 13-player group.

Catcher Brian Serven will round out the list of roster hopefuls that have made the team, filling in for Danny Jansen, who’s recovering from a broken bone in his right hand.

This is how the Blue Jays’ hitter pool will look on Thursday when they open the season against the Rays at Tropicana Field:

Bo Bichette, SS
Cavan Biggio, UTIL
Ernie Clement, INF
Vladimir Guerrero Jr., 1B
Kevin Kiermaier, OF
Isiah Kiner-Falefa, INF
Alejandro Kirk, C
Davis Schneider, 2B/LF
Brian Serven, C
George Springer, OF
Justin Turner, DH
Daulton Varsho, OF
Daniel Vogelbach, DH

There’s no surprise to any of the other names on that list, and Serven’s addition became a necessity when Jansen went down late in the spring with little time to recover ahead of Opening Day. Meanwhile, each of the three names announced on Sunday bring something different to the Blue Jays’ lineup.

“You’re looking to stay as balanced as you can,” Schneider said on Friday. “And you’re looking at how we’re going to roll out most of our everyday guys and how they fit into our equation, what kind of pitches they typically handle. Left-right splits, for sure, but I think where they play defensively, what kind of pitches they have handled in their career and how that fits with guys that are already slam dunks to be on the roster.”

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The biggest question mark among this trio was the left-handed-hitting Vogelbach, a non-roster invitee who had plenty of competition for the backup DH role -- especially after Toronto signed Joey Votto as an NRI later in the spring. But Votto hasn’t played since rolling his ankle after his first at-bat, and Vogelbach continued to do what he’s done throughout his career: controlling the strike zone and providing power for a club that still remembers how costly the lack of pop can be. Expect to see him exclusively as a DH, and mostly against right-handed pitchers, whether that’s in the starting lineup or off the bench as John Schneider plays the matchups in later innings.

“He complements what we have already really well,” Schneider said of Vogelbach. “His track record is really good, and I'm excited to have him, the person, with the group.”

Davis Schneider brings a similar ability to pull the ball and do damage, as evidenced by the historic start to his career last season, but he can also profile as a line-drive hitter and an athletic baserunner. How Schneider handles fastballs up in the zone will be a development to watch this season, since that was one of the main tools pitchers used to cool him down in September.

He will likely take the bulk of his reps at second base, but the Blue Jays have given Schneider plenty of innings in left field this spring, too.

“What he’s doing offensively is what drives what he’s doing,” John Schneider said last week. “Then if he can be serviceable in second and in left, that’s just more opportunity for him.”

The last spot in the infield will go to Clement, who “forced our hand,” as John Schneider put it, by whiffing just twice in 63 swings this spring. Through Sunday, Clement was hitting .356 with a 1.027 OPS, three homers and eight RBIs in 16 Grapefruit League games. Contact is his calling card, but the power surge this spring shows that there may be an untapped side to Clement’s game.

“His game has evolved so much in the last year,” John Schneider said. “He’s hitting the ball with authority, [he provides] defensive versatility, baserunning. Just everything, really. He really turned the corner last year with [assistant hitting coach] Matt Hague in Buffalo, and he kind of just never stopped. So, forced our hand, really.”

The 28-year-old entered the year out of options, and his performance made him too valuable to risk waivers. That led to a trade that sent Santiago Espinal to the Reds and paved the way for Clement to make the team.

Toronto’s 40-man roster is at 39 players, meaning the club will need to open one more spot to add Serven and Vogelbach ahead of Opening Day. Decisions on the pitching side are expected to be finalized on Monday.