Blue Jays’ George Springer leaves game vs. Rays after spraining ankle on catch attempt

Toronto Blue Jays outfielder George Springer left Friday night’s game against the Tampa Bay Rays (GameTracker) with what the team described as a left ankle sprain. Springer suffered the injury when he attempted to make a leaping grab on a Brandon Lowe batted ball in the bottom of the second inning. 

Here’s a look at the play:

Springer was replaced in the subsequent inning by Raimel Tapia.

Springer, 32 years old, entered the night hitting .283/.344/.531 (159 OPS+) with seven home runs and two stolen bases (on three tries). His aforementioned 159 OPS+ was tied with Vladimir Guerrero Jr. for the best among qualified Blue Jays hitters. Toronto’s lineup, then, will be missing a key part if Springer’s ankle requires him to spend time on the injured list.

Should Springer indeed head to the shelf, he would join a few other notable Blue Jays there, including Cavan Biggio, Nate Pearson, and Hyun-Jin Ryu. The Blue Jays are expected to activate Ryu ahead of Saturday’s game, a contest he’s expected to start.

The Blue Jays, for their part, came into Friday’s game having dropped four consecutive contests. Their 17-15 record on the season had them positioned in third place in the American League East, some 6 ½ games back of the New York Yankees.