The Toronto Blue Jays have agreed to a Minor League contract with veteran infielder Eduardo Escobar. Escobar, 35, split time with the New York Mets and Los Angeles Angels in 2023, tallying a .613 OPS in 100 games. With Escobar being signed to a Minor League deal, he will not be immediately placed on the 40-man roster to begin the season. In order for the veteran infielder to be on the 40-man, the Blue Jays would have to DFA or trade a player to trim it down. A Santiago Espinal trade seems to be a likely option after the Escobar signing.
What Could Escobar’s Role Be in 2024?
Eduardo Escobar will likely serve as infield depth for the Toronto Blue Jays. Against lefties in 2024, the switch-hitter put up a solid .769 OPS with a 108 wRC+. The Toronto Blue Jays fell out of the top 10 in team OPS against lefties in 2023. Escobar’s abilities can be utilized in the starting nine and bring the Blue Jays back to being one of the most potent lineups against southpaws.
What Were the Problems in 2023?
The issues in 2023 for Escobar were about an increase in K%, a decrease in launch angle, and a blatant regression in HardHit%. In 2022, he tallied a 32% HardHit% against changeups. Fast forward to 2023 where Escobar’s HardHit% against changeups decreased to an abysmal 12.8%. The same case happened against sinking fastballs for Escobar. The vet’s HardHit% against sinkers was 50.8% in 2022, to which it reduced to 37.9%. This blatant issue is one of the main reasons why Escobar struggled so much in 2023.
The reduction in launch angle also proved to be problematic for Escobar in 2023. In 2022, the 35-year-old produced the second-highest launch angle of his career, contributing to his impressive mark of 20 HRs. His launch angle decreased by approximately 6 degrees between the years of ‘22 and ‘23, resulting in the lack of home runs (only 6 across 100 games) present for Escobar in 2023. Perhaps the Toronto Blue Jays revamped offensive coaching staff can fix Escobar’s mechanics so he can return to his former glory.
Wrapping It Up
The low-risk signing of Escobar can prove to be beneficial if he excels in Spring Training. However, with the overload of infielders that the Blue Jays have in their system, it is possible that Toronto still has moves to make. Allowing Escobar to provide quality at-bats against left-handed pitching in 2024 can bring Toronto back to the top in the offensive power rankings.