TORONTO -- George Springer never stops. If he’s not talking, he’s singing. If he’s singing, he’s probably dancing, too.

The confidence you see in Springer didn’t always come easy. Springer stutters and has dealt with that since he was a child, but he is now using his platform to support young kids going through the same thing. Sunday night in Toronto, after the Blue Jays’ 5-4 win over the Pirates, Springer hosted a charity bowling event to benefit SAY (Stuttering Association for the Young) and Jays Care Foundation.

Springer wants to encourage young people who stutter by sharing his own experiences, both good and bad. He wants to give kids an example and help them understand that, even if it takes a little longer, what they have to say is worth saying.

“If you ask any of my teammates and coaches, it’s no secret. … I like to talk,” Springer said. “I will talk your ear off all day, even if you don’t want me to. It didn’t used to be that way. For all of the kids or the parents who have a child who stutters, or has come across somebody who does, I hope that I can be proof that things do get easier. You can do what you want to do. You can say what you want to say. You can be who you want to be.”

Springer was joined at the event by a group of Blue Jays teammates and coaches, including Chris Bassitt, José Berríos, Danny Jansen, Cavan Biggio, Trevor Richards and others. The event featured a silent auction with signed jerseys from Vince Carter, Auston Matthews and John Tavares, plus some signed Vladimir Guerrero Jr. memorabilia, Bruce Springsteen tickets and more.

The proceeds will benefit SAY, including their Camp SAY summer camp and Springer’s MVP Camp SAY in Toronto, along with Jays Care.

“I wished that there was someone when I was a kid who could make stuttering cool,” said Taro Alexander, SAY’s Founder. “Then one day, when I wasn’t a kid anymore, I saw this really amazing person on television. He was cool, he was a great athlete and he stuttered just like me, just like the hundreds and thousands of friends I have who stutter. He owned it. He didn’t shy away from saying what he wanted to say. He was just himself. He did what I had never seen anyone do before him. He made stuttering cool.”

After the opening remarks, hosted by Sportsnet’s Hazel Mae, they got down to bowling. Springer picked Bassitt for the best bowler on the team and, just as quickly, picked himself as the worst. He was just going to grip it, rip it and hope. There will be no finesse on the lanes.

Springer has been working with SAY for years now, dating back to his time with the Houston Astros, but that work has continued to expand into Canada with the Blue Jays. According to SAY, more than 80 million people in the world stutter (400,000 in Canada) and 5% of all children experience stuttering at some point.

“You can’t let something that you can’t control stop you from being who you want to be,” Springer said. “There are a lot of really good people in this world who will help and a lot of really good people who don’t care [about your stutter]. One of the most important things I hope everybody understands is that you just need to embrace it. Embrace who you are. Embrace how you talk.”

Springer has left an impact on so many young kids along the way. Among them is Mateo Sanchez, who has been inspired by Springer and now works to raise awareness of stuttering and gives presentations in school. Mateo’s story, told with such care by his father, MLB.com’s Jesse Sanchez, shows what it can mean to young kids who stutter when someone like Springer -- that cool baseball player on TV -- connects with them about what they share.

“What gets lost is that they don’t realize how much they’ve helped me,” Springer said. “I can’t say one thing and not go do it myself, so it’s been an awesome time. I’m very, very honored to do this.”