The Toronto Blue Jays season has truly struggled to get off teh ground following an opening series sweep, and after making the World Series less than 12 months ago, all signs are pointing to this team selling at the deadline, admitting that 2026 may end up being a lost season.
In game one of their series with the Washington Nationals, the team came away victorious 3-2, and now with a 49-58 record on the season, they may still remain within striking distance of the Wild Card race, with just five games separating them from the final playoff spot in the American League. That means they’ll need to get a move on if they are to save their season, and ahead of game two against the Nationals, they’ve made an intriguing change regarding star infielder Ernie Clement.
Ernie Clement Changes Positions on Tuesday
GettyErnie Clement of the Toronto Blue Jays.
Given the injuries and the constant changes to the Blue Jays roster, they’ve gotten used to shaking things up throughout the 2026 campaign on a nightly basis, with inconsistencies also playing a role, and with the team going into pure desperation, that’s likely not going to change anytime soon.
Unfortunately, their latest change isn’t a positive one, as the team have announced that on Tuesday, superstar third baseman Kazuma Okamoto is out of the lineup, and in his place will be Ernie Clement, with Luis Urias and Andres Gimenez instead set to make up the middle infield.
This season, Clement has taken 24 at bats while playing third base, and while he’s shown how versatile he can be in the past, 300 of his 402 at bats this season have come while being penciled in at second base, with this latest change simply showing how valuable he is to this team, as he rarely misses a game. In those 402 at bats this season, Clement is hitting .296 with a .726 OPS to go along with 8 home runs and 34 RBI, and while the offense have struggled, without him in the lineup on a consistent basis, they would be much, much worse.
Can the Blue Jays Conjure the Same Magic From 2025?
Given the way this team has looked in recent times, many fans have simply counted them out from being post-season contenders in 2026, but with a realistic shot at pushing for the final Wild Card spot in the AL, this is a team that still believes they can go on a second half run in the next few months.
Unfortunately for Toronto, Okamoto, who has carried this offense for much of 2026 has been struggling as of late, and with the team simply trying to get their hottest bats in the lineup, moving Clement to third makes sense. Only time will tell if this team can conjure some of their second-half magic again in 2026, but with versatile players like Clement that can play well at multiple positions, fans should get used to seeing this chopping and changing of the lineups down the stretch.
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