Blue Jays Hot & Not: Stripling is on Fire!

Jays From the Couch looks at which Blue Jays are hot and which are not and this time, Mr Stripling is leading the way

The Toronto Blue Jays have had a rough couple of weeks, but still remain in the hunt for a playoff spot. In the run of a season, players are going to go through their share of ups and downs and here’s a look at some of the current trends:

Ross Stripling– HOT!

Tuesday night saw the 31 yr old Stripling go 6 innings against the Miami Marlins. He was on fire. He struck out 7, walked one, gave up two hits, one of which was a solo homer and it was the only earned run he allowed. Once a bit of an enigma to Blue Jays fans, Stripling seems to have figured out how to get back to his 2018/2019 self, which would be huge for the Blue Jays.

Going back to May 24th (6 starts), Stripling has really turned things around. Since he gave up 6 ER in 3.2 innings on May 19, he has had one bad start, which came against the Red Sox on June 11 and even then, he went over 5 innings, giving up 4 ER. All of his other starts have been much better. If we take out that June 11 start, he has given up a total of 5 ER in the other 5 starts, including shutting out the Rays for 7 innings on May 24th. If he can maintain this effectiveness, the Blue Jays fortunes look that much better.

Randal Grichuk– NOT!

After a torrid start to the season, Grichuk has cooled off rather dramatically in June. He has hit just .200 with 4 home runs, 8 RBI and has struck out 25 times, compared to two walks. April/May saw Grichuk collect 57 hits, while he has produced just 15 in June. His June OPS has dropped all the way to .594, his wRC+ value has fallen to just 58 and he is striking out at a rate of 32.5%, which is almost double what he did in April/May. It was fun while it lasted, wasn’t it?

Vladimir Guerrero Jr. HOT!

This is a bit of an easy one since the 22yr old phenom has been on fire all season. But, this discussion would be a massive whiff if we didn’t mention him. Look at these numbers: .340/.441/.668, 23 HR, 60 RBI, 195 wRC+, 4.1 fWAR. These are video game type numbers. Plenty of guys will never see these numbers in a full season, let alone in just 71 games played.

Vlad the Younger has struck out just 16.4% of the time and has walked at a rate of 14.1%. Just so impressive. And, unlike Grichuk, who’s season totals are buoyed by a hot start, Vlad is seeing just as much consistency now as he did a month ago, or even two months ago. In the entire month of June, he has had just 4 hitless games and never two in a row. He’s had 7 multi hit games. 6 of his home runs have come in June, so I’m sure someone would call that a step back from the first two months, but those people are no fun at parties, so we can ignore them.

Rowdy Tellez– NOT!

Tellez is someone Blue Jays fans love to cheer for. When he’s hot, he is a power hitting machine. The problem is that he has not been able to maintain a steady temperature at the plate. And, it has cost him a spot on the big league roster. The Blue Jays need a lefty bat, but they still sent Tellez to AAA to make room for Jacob Barnes, the reliever they got from the Mets.

Given his numbers, it really isn’t a surprise that he was sent down. In 50 games (151 plate appearances), Tellez has managed a .610 OPS, a wRC+ of 66 with 29 hits, 20 of which were singles. He’s struck out 33 times. With Vlad hitting the way he is and playing a rather nice first base, there doesn’t seem to be any reason to keep a roster spot for Tellez. Maybe he’ll find his stroke again in AAA.