Ross Atkins isn’t happy with the Blue Jays’ record, but he wants fans to understand there’s a sense of urgency in the locker room that people outside the organization may not perceive not.
The Toronto club’s general manager met with reporters at the Rogers Center on Saturday morning, a few hours before the team faced the Tampa Bay Rays. He commented for around twenty minutes on the setbacks of the Blue Jays at the start of the season. The team disappoints with a 19-24 record.
“We have seen some encouraging signs recently that may not have led to victories and we believe that with a little more time, all the talent within this group will be able to adjust the bar,” said Atkins said. However, it has to happen soon. »
Atkins usually meets with the media once a month and Saturday’s press scrum was on his calendar. However, it came after the team lost its last two games and didn’t reach the trail for the first seven and a third innings in a 4-3 loss to the Rays on Friday night.
Although Atkins preaches patience, he said his has limits.
“It’s not a specific date,” he said. We’re a quarter of the way through the season, and then when you get to the halfway point there’s not much you can do if the result stays the same. »
Atkins noted that Blue Jays management had held discussions with other teams in hopes of making a trade and that it was also possible to recall players from the minors.
“The problem is if we get a player via trade, we also have to sacrifice the same level of talent,” Atkins noted. I think the solutions to score more points will have to come from within, whether they are already in our locker room or at the AAA level. »
The Blue Jays offense is struggling so far in 2024.
The Jays scored just 155 points in their first 43 games, the second lowest total in the league. Only the Chicago White Sox (130) did worse than them. The Jays have also hit just 36 home runs and their collective batting average of .227 ranks them 25th in the majors.
Atkins said Blue Jays hitters have to trust their approach.
“We are getting good accounts. We make better decisions, he said. You don’t want to put everyone in the same basket, but a lot of our hitters affected our ability to score runs. »
Stars George Springer, Bo Bichette and Vladimir Guerrero Jr. had a difficult start to the season.
Springer is hitting .196 with three homers in 153 at-bats this season. Bichette is hitting .221 with two homers and Guerrero has hit .268 with four homers so far.
“It’s always a team thing,” Atkins recalled. The teams that have success like we had in 2021 and 2022 are the ones that benefit from good seasons from their good players. »
2024-05-18 17:34:47
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