Marcus Semien Is Getting His Roll On At The Plate

This season at the plate, Marcus Semien is getting his roll on.

The Toronto Blue Jays have their eyes on making the postseason again after an early-round exit to the Tampa Bay Rays in the 2020 AL Wild Card Series.

During the offseason, the team made a few moves, one of which was acquiring the power-hitting infielder. 

 

So far, Semien has put a smile on the faces of Blue Jays fans with his production throughout the season. Through the first  30 games, the 30-year old posted a .254 batting average with seven home runs and 16 RBIs. 

Let’s be real here, not too many players are seeing the ball like Semien is. On May 6, the Blue Jays took on Semien’s former ballclub, the Oakland A’s and boy did he have a game.

He went 4-for-6 with a home run, a double, and three runs scored helping the Blue Jays to a 10-4 win. 

This man has been locked in at the plate. He’s driven in a run in 12 of his last 13 games and registered four multi-hit games during that span.

 

Take a look at these stats in his last 13 games: .367 batting, three home runs, nine RBI and a 1.049 OPS.

Oh and let’s not forget that, going into Friday’s action, he was riding a six-game hitting streak to top it all off.

In an article from MLB.com, Semien talked about his success at the plate. “I feel good. I’m able to not think about mechanics as much,” Semien said. “I just think about the approach and what I’m looking for. That’s a good place to be. That’s where a lot of players want to be all the time, but sometimes it’s not there.”

His performance at the plate is rubbing off on his fellow teammates and that’s something he loves to see.

“Hitting is contagious,” Semien said. “When the whole lineup is struggling, you want to be that guy to get everybody going. That’s baseball, though. Some nights it’s there, some nights it’s not.”

Our MLBBro is playing some of the best baseball we have witnessed so far this season.

Semien has had some success during his career, especially during his time with the A’s.

During the 2018 season, he batted .255 with 15 home runs and 14 stolen bases. He was one of the best defensive players that year leading the league in assists with 459.

 

In a close race for the Gold Glove Award at the shortstop position, Semien was one of three finalists, losing out to Andrelton Simmons of the Los Angeles Angels. 

The following season, Semien turned up even more as he improved his batting average, hitting .285, with a career-high 33 home runs. He also led the majors with 747 plate appearances. 

 

At the end of the 2019 season, Semien was named to the inaugural All-MLB Second Team at shortstop and he finished third in the voting for American League MVP.

 

The Blue Jays are very fortunate that Semien agreed to move to second for Bo Bichette, a much less accomplished shortstop.

That kind of veteran leadership will be important for the Blue Jays late in the season, and if he keeps hitting how he is now, Semien will probably take some hardware home with him when the season concludes.