Welcome back to Blue Jay of the Week, where the Jay who has contributed the most along with two runners-up are acknowledged.
Josh Donaldson Back in MVP Form
This week, the Toronto Blue Jays found a fair amount of success, winning four of seven games. Though they dropped their series against the Baltimore Orioles, plenty of positives emerged. Most notably, the bats woke up in a big way, to the tune of fifty-two runs scored. With so much offense produced in just one week, it should come as little surprise that all three featured players are hitters.
Runners-up
Devon Travis
Travis had a great week, collecting twelve total hits – six for extra bases. His timing is finally on its way back following his DL stint, and it highlights his importance to the team. Travis features a great combination of speed and power, something he showed off this week.
The difference this week was his patience at the plate. Travis only struck out once this series; he waited patiently for his pitch and when he saw it, he did not miss. This result stems from his increasing comfort in the batting box, which comes with at-bats. Expect Travis to continue to improve as he finds his groove, and in the coming weeks finds himself named Blue Jay of the Week.
Michael Saunders
The Canadian born Saunders continued his impressive run. Despite notching only six hits this week, he earned his spot on this list with his performance in just one game. On June 17, against Baltimore, Saunders had the best game of his career. He went three for five, and all three of those hits left the park. He totaled eight RBI and single handily dismantled the rival Orioles. He was firing on all cylinders that night; the ball must have looked like a beach ball. He was only decent the rest of the week, but a night as special that one deserves to be recognized.
Blue Jay of the Week
Josh Donaldson
The MVP is back, or at least that’s what Blue Jay nation is hoping. Josh Donaldson sure did look a lot like the 2015 version of himself that won the American League’s most prestigious individual award. he put his rare combination of power, speed, and fantastic defense on display this week. He hit the ball all over the field for a total of twelve hits, eight of which went for extra bases. He also proved dangerous on the basepaths, recording a steal and scoring eleven times to lead the Jays.
As good as he was offensively, he also impressed with his defense this week, making a couple incredible plays at the hot corner. He showed off both his range and arm strength on a couple balls which forced him to move to his right to make a play, meaning he had to throw from behind the foul line. That range and arm strength are what make him such a good defender. For the Blue Jays to make a World Series push, Josh Donaldson has to be the best player on the field night-in and night-out. That’s what he was this week, and therefore he earns the title of Blue Jay of the Week!
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