In quite possibly the worst Friday evening news dump ever, George Springer has left the Toronto Blue Jays’ Friday night game against the Tampa Bay Rays.
Springer crashed into the wall at center field trying to catch a flyball. He stayed down on the ground briefly with the Jays’ training staff to check up on him, but he initially stayed in the game.
The play that caused George Springer to leave today’s Blue Jays game vs the Rays
https://t.co/priW1JjCkK pic.twitter.com/gVh6gwlA0L
— Sportsnet (@Sportsnet) May 14, 2022
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After grounding out in the top of the third, Ramiel Tapia took over his spot. It goes without saying but this is far from great news for the Jays. Staying positive is about all we can do, but it’s hard to not think back to his debut season in Toronto last year where he battled with a quad injury for what seemed like forever.
Springer’s been off to a strong start to his season slashing .283/.344/.531 while ripping seven dingers and 18 RBI. On top of that, he’s also been a vocal leader for this club helping to steer the ship.
According to Sportsnet’s Hazel Mae, Springer held a closed door, players only meeting Wednesday after the loss to the Yankees, where he had a general theme of staying positive.
“My main message was to slow down. It’s all good. It’s just baseball.”
Zach Laing is the Nation Network’s news director and senior columnist. He can be followed on Twitter at @zjlaing, or reached by email at zach@oilersnation.com.