In their continued search for some sort of offensive spark, the Blue Jays finally called up Spencer Horwitz from Triple-A Buffalo after the 26-year-old spent two months terrorizing International League pitching.
To make room, The Jays designated Cavan Biggio for assignment, giving them 10 days to trade, release or waive their one-time second baseman of the future.
Biggio reached five years of service time last month so he couldn’t be optioned to the minors without his permission.
Horwitz, a 24th-round draft pick out of Radford University in Virginia in 2019, was hitting .335 this season with the Bisons, with a .456 on-base percentage and a .514 slugging percentage that was driven by 22 doubles in 57 games.
When general manager Ross Atkins last addressed the media, on May 18, he said a balance had to be found between the benefits of calling up some of the minor-leaguers who have been putting up great numbers in Buffalo and how much playing time they would see in the major leagues.
“I think it just comes down to his impact, playing once a week on our team versus his growth and development and continued improvement playing every day,” Atkins said, when asked about Horwitz specifically.
At the time, Horwitz had just started to play a little bit of second base, making two starts in an effort to expand his versatility. He has since made nine more.
Back then, Vladimir Guerrero Jr. was locked in at first base. He has made two starts at third base in the last six games.
With Guerrero taking the occasion turn at third and Daniel Vogelbach earning more playing time, Biggio had started just once since May 27. Four of his last five appearances came as a pinch-runner. After starting the season strongly聽鈥 Biggio had a .316/.409/.447 slash line over the first two weeks聽鈥 the former Eastern League MVP had hit just .139 since.
It’s tough to expect a lot right away from a minor-league call-up. Addison Barger came up in late April and went for 1-for-18 before being sent back down. The Baltimore Orioles called up Jackson Holliday, the top prospect in baseball, in April and he went 2-for-34 with 18 strikeouts before returning to Triple-A.
But this isn’t Horwitz’s first cup of big-league coffee. Called up for the first time last June, the Maryland native got his first big-league hit, a ground single to right field, in his first at-bat.聽
He was sent down after a few days, but returned in September to post a .743 OPS down the stretch, including his first major-league home run. That .743 OPS would be fifth on the current iteration of the Jays, behind only Danny Jansen, Guerrero, Davis Schneider and Daulton Varsho.
The Jays’ hope is that Horwitz provides a similar spark to the one Schneider did when he was called up from Buffalo last year. It might be a little much to expect Horwitz to repeat Schneider’s first at-bat home run and a nine-hit opening weekend, but he could be a consistent threat to get on base while bringing solid doubles power.
It shouldn’t take long for him to find his way into the leadoff spot, at least against right-handed pitching.
Horwitz was not in the starting lineup against Oakland left-hander Hogan Harris on Friday.
After putting up a zero to begin Friday night’s game in Oakland, the Jays have failed to score in the first inning for 29 straight games, just two off the major-league record. Their leadoff hitters entered the day with a .599 OPS for the season, the worst of any spot in the lineup, and their slash line for the 62 plate appearances leading off a game was a putrid .150/.177/.217.
Biggio, who is unlikely to get through waivers and will likely be traded instead, finished fifth in American League rookie of the year voting in 2019, when he hit a career-high 16 home runs and posted a .793 OPS. He had a career-high .807 OPS in the COVID-shortened 2020 season, but he has battled injury and ineffectiveness since, hitting just .219 with 24 home runs over almost 3 1/2 seasons.
Strike-zone discipline was his calling card, but his walk rate, while still above-average this year at 10.7 per cent, has dropped every season. Still, it’s a surprise to see the Jays cutting bait. Biggio’s speed, defensive versatility and baseball IQ make him an asset to any team, even if he’s not hitting well, and he’s widely regarded as an excellent teammate.
Instead, the Jays are holding onto the one-dimensional Vogelbach, hoping he can maintain his recent success聽鈥 a .913 OPS since May 17聽鈥 and, with the addition of Horwitz, help get a scuffling offence going.
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