Midway through Spring Training, the Toronto Blue Jays were dealt a tough blow in their catching corps.
Danny Jansen was heading to the sidelines with a fracture of the pisiform bone in his right wrist after taking a pitch inside. The early prognosis was that he would likely start the year on the IL as he dealt with another hand-related injury and he did start the year off the field, with the club employing Alejandro Kirk and Brian Serven behind the plate while Jansen recovered.
Jays fans may recall from last season when it seemed like the Illinois product could not avoid being hit on the hands when he stepped into the batter’s box, finishing the season on the IL with a fracture in his right finger. In the previous season, Jansen also missed time with a metacarpal fracture on his pinky finger on his left hand, another result of being hit on the hand while at the plate. That injury was at an inopportune time, with Jansen swinging a hot bat at the time to the tune of a .915 OPS and seven homers in 19 games after returning from an oblique injury.
Jansen returned to the Blue Jays roster on April 16th after a short stint in Buffalo and since then, the right-handed batter has been one of the top bats in the lineup.
Blue Jays catcher Danny Jansen is putting up solid numbers since his return from the injured list
Through 54 at-bats, Jansen owns a .315/.393/.667 slash line and has an even number of walks to strikeouts at seven apiece. Just over 64% of all of his hits have been for extra bases, with Jansen collecting seven doubles and four home runs to the tune of six RBIs and a 1.060 OPS. He also owns a .302 BABip on the campaign and has multi-hit games in five contests since returning from the IL.
Jansen has been finding success against southpaws in 2024, collecting four hits, two of which were doubles, through 10 at-bats. His stats against right-handed arms are also standing out, with all four of his home runs and RBIs coming against RHP, compiling a .295 average and a .682 SLG against the similar hand. For his career, he owns a .454 SLG and a .411 SLG against right-handers and left-handers respectively and the early sample size and adjustments at the plate this season are seeing improved results in terms of balls in play while hitting for extra bases at a higher clip.
Danny Jansen – Toronto Blue Jays (4)
pic.twitter.com/VNXIja7Uwk— MLB HR Videos (@MLBHRVideos) May 11, 2024
Behind the plate, he ranks in the 97th percentile in blocks above average (five) and has thrown out 11% of base stealers, catching two runners so far this season while posting a 1.96-second pop time behind the plate. He has seen an increased workload since his return after Kirk carried most of the duties while Jansen was on the IL but he has also posted better offensive stats to continue being pencilled into the lineup with regularity, catching most of the Blue Jays pitching staff.
Historically, Jansen has been a plus hitter in terms of power when healthy, with the catcher posting double-digit home run totals in four of the past five seasons, with the lone outlier being the condensed 2020 campaign. While his average has flirted towards the Mendoza line for most of his career, Jansen’s ability to be able to put the ball into the gaps or over the outfield wall on any given night has been a benefit in the batting order.
His top season came back in 2022 when he authored a .260/.339/.516 slash line with a .855 OPS and 15 home runs through just 215 at-bats. Multiple injuries limited him to just 72 games that season but he still posted a 2.7 fWAR on the year. Since 2020 (minimum 500 plate appearances), Jansen ranks 11th in fWAR (7.3) just behind Kirk (7.9) while having significantly fewer plate appearances than those in front of him, ranging from 300-1000 PAs across the 1-10 rankings.
For a Jays squad that has struggled to find consistency at the plate in terms of run production and ranking towards the bottom half of the league in most offensive statistical categories, Jansen’s hot start to the year has been a bonus, especially since fellow catcher Alejandro Kirk has been unable to replicate his 2022 success and multiple Jays bats are batting below expectations to start the campaign.
This is a Danny Jansen appreciation post. 🙌 pic.twitter.com/WpeFX3CAFo
— Sportsnet (@Sportsnet) May 10, 2024
In a contract year, the 2024 season will be important for Jansen as he looks to stay healthy and continue to put the ball in play before he potentially tests free agency later this year barring a contract extension with the Blue Jays.
If Jansen can continue to stay on the field and put up solid numbers at the plate, rivalling his 2022 season, he is in line for a sizeable raise this upcoming offseason whether it is with the Blue Jays or elsewhere in the league amidst a few other catchers slated to hit the open market in James McCann, Yan Gomes, Omar Narvaez, and Travis d’Arnaud (club option) amongst others.
For now, the Jays will benefit from Jansen continuing to swing a hot bat as the Jays look to dig themselves back to .500 baseball.
