While they haven’t been officially eliminated from playoff contention yet, Monday night’s loss in Baltimore to the Orioles just about put an end to the Toronto Blue Jays’ 2026 season.
Even before that, much of the discussion around the Blue Jays had started to shift toward the offseason and how they can improve the roster for 2027. Everyone can agree that plenty of change needs to be made to the lineup, and Sportsnet’s Kevin Barker believes Ernie Clement shifting back into a utility role rather than being an everyday player is one of them.
“That’s a topic of conversation for me in the offseason. He can’t be your everyday second baseman. And if I need to trade him to get what I need, I’m trading him. That’s kind of where we’re at with this. My lineup needs to get better. And the conversation we’ve asked John, you’ve asked him, I’ve asked him multiple weeks in a row, we’ve asked about Ernie before, and John always basically has the same thing: ‘He’s played a lot.’ OK, if that’s your answer every time we ask about Ernie, then stop playing him a lot. Now, he’s a fan favorite, and boy, you know people will be throwing their hands in the air until you start winning a bunch of games. Then nobody will remember if Ernie’s on the team or off the team,”
The 30-year-old Clement is hitting .264 with nine HRs and 48 RBI through 153 games played so far this season. He’s currently playing on the one-year, $4.6 million contract extension he signed with the Blue Jays in January to avoid arbitration.
After a fantastic start to the season that earned him a spot on the AL All-Star team, it hasn’t been pretty for Clement, who has hit .208 and .159 in the months of August and September, respectively.
While there’s no doubt he’s played a ton of baseball over the last calendar year, nobody wants to hear those kinds of excuses when the expectations are as high as they are in Toronto. If the Blue Jays truly want to return to being World Series contenders, then tough decisions like lessening Clement’s role will potentially have to be made this winter.
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