Blue Jays’ Matt Chapman says his performance this year has been ‘horses–t’
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Matt Chapman’s Toronto Blue Jays career isn’t off to the greatest of starts.
Through his first 84 games in a Blue Jays uniform, Chapman is slashing .218/.295/.413 with a wRC+ of 97 (league average is 100). Those numbers are a far cry from his 2018-20 seasons with the Oakland Athletics when he was one of the best offensive third basemen in the game.
Matt Chapman’s Blue Jays career hasn’t had a smooth start. (Rick Madonik/Toronto Star via Getty Images)
The Blue Jays would love Chapman to find his groove at the plate again, but the primary reason they acquired him in the offseason for a package of prospects was for his sensational defence. A three-time Gold Glove winner and two-time Platinum Glove recipient, Chapman hasn’t been pleased with how he’s performing on that side of the ball, either.
“Horses—t,” Chapman told Sportsnet’s Arash Madani when asked how he would sum up the first half of his 2022 campaign. “I just haven’t made enough good plays defensively.”
“I need to be more consistent; I need to be more of a difference-maker… I don’t need to put video game numbers up but I have to be consistent with results.”
There is some reason for optimism despite Chapman’s pedestrian numbers to this point. The 29-year-old ranks 18th in MLB in average exit velocity, ahead of Matt Olson, Freddie Freeman and Ronald Acuna Jr., just to name a few big names.
Chapman has also been plagued by some poor batted-ball luck, as his batting average on balls in play sits at just .251 (league average is around .300). He’s hitting the ball hard but doesn’t have much to show for it.
Chapman isn’t the only Blue Jays slugger who has struggled to live up to expectations. Young stars Vladimir Guerrero Jr. and Bo Bichette haven’t been able to recapture their superstar form from last season as the Blue Jays sit with an underwhelming 47-43 record.
The general underperformance from the team that was favoured to lead the American League in wins led to manager Charlie Montoyo losing his job on Wednesday.
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