His excitement for the group, the city, and the chance to continue his career in Toronto—he recently inked a one-year, $10.5 million U.S. free agent contract with the team—for a second season.
Furthermore, the 33-year-old may be the player in the clubhouse with the most vitality.
However, one of the most admirable aspects about the veteran, who is back as the focal point of the Jays’ excellent defensive outfield, is his honest and open assessment of the team’s shortcomings.”Collectively as a unit last year, we just did not find our groove, for whatever reason,” Kiermaier said on a recent Zoom call with Jays beat media. “And we’re trying to make adjustments through the season because the whole time we’re like’man, we’re way better offensively than what we’re showing right now.'” It was a wake-up call for us. Last year, we knew it the whole season. Nothing came easy to us. Baseball is hard and guys were putting in their
work, but in the end, we simply did not make enough use of our offensive potential.
Even though he wasn’t signed for the Jays for his batting abilities, Kiermaier acknowledges that it was startling to watch his more well-known offensive colleagues struggle. He claims that during the season, it was a topic of conversation in the clubhouse and dugout.
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Kiermaier remarked, “It was weird.” “Because I spent years playing against those Blue Jays teams, and I can honestly say that you never imagined this team having offensive struggles.” Then we carried it out.
Naturally, Kiermaier wasn’t by himself. And those who began at the top of the organisation had that perspective on the intermittent ineptitude.
Prioritising pitching and defence ahead of the 2023 season was the decision made by general manager Ross Atkins. Atkins wasn’t afraid to share that blueprint because he thought there was still plenty of offence and didn’t think the offensive would drop to middle-of-the-pack status in the MLB.
It didn’t help that Alejandro Kirk never fully recovered after arriving late to camp, Vlad Guerrero Jr. struggled for much of the season with his approach at the plate, and there wasn’t a player who was reliable throughout the season save Bo Bichette.
Even though retrospectively it appears the general office made a grave error in judgement, Kiermaier believes Toronto has enough skill in the roster going into 2024 to offensively comeback and demonstrate the case.
“You really can’t imagine that we’ll experience what occurred the previous year,” Kiermaier remarked. “A large number of guys who are hungry and motivated will make a comeback.” You have that extra spark, as I know a lot of people on our team, when you go into the season trying to prove something. We intend to pose a threat.
It should be noted that Kiermaier is not alone in being overly optimistic. His optimism is unwavering, which is perhaps one of the reasons Jays fans loved him so much the previous season.
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However, Kiermaier expected his second venture into free agency to be more lucrative than it turned out, so that partnership seemed set to end quickly. Without a doubt, he had anticipated being more in demand than the Jays being the only genuine contenders.
Kiermmaier claimed that the lack of interest from other major league teams “caught him off guard.”
Other teams expressed interest in him, but more on a part-time basis—as a pleasant little addition or a fourth outfielder, for example.
to complete the roster,” stated Kiermaier.
“Last year, despite earning a Gold Glove with the Jays and fulfilling all of my commitments, I received relatively few offers. “If I were a team, I would want Me because I know what I can provide on and off the pitch,” I said as I sat there being biassed towards myself.
It’s acceptable if folks weren’t interested. I only need one team to be interested, and I am really appreciative that the Blue Jays were.
Kiermaier is the Jays’ best addition thus far in what has been a lacklustre off-season for Atkins. It doesn’t hurt to bring back a beloved player with excellent defensive abilities, but will it be sufficient?
