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Looking at the pathways the Blue Jays can take with Alan Roden
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Photo credit: © Mike Watters-Imagn Images
Ryley Delaney
Mar 20, 2025, 20:30 EDTUpdated: Mar 20, 2025, 20:28 EDT
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Alan Roden is one of the best-performing Toronto Blue Jays players this Spring Training.
Through 33 plate appearances this spring, Roden has slashed .391/.545/.739 with two home runs with an 18.2 BB% and a 9.1 K% for a 224 wRC+. Of any player with 10 or more plate appearances in the Jays organization, Roden has the highest wRC+.
It’s becoming increasingly clear that Roden is ready for MLB action. However, there’s a log jam of outfielders all vying for just one or two spots, depending on the health of Daulto Varsho. It doesn’t help Roden’s case that he isn’t on the Blue Jays’ 40-man roster, unlike a player like Joey Loperfido.
With that being said, let’s take a look at the handful of pathways the Jays can take with Roden before Thursday’s Opening Day.

The everyday centre fielder (for now)

This pathway depends on the health of Daulton Varsho and how long he’s out. Varsho won’t be ready to play in the outfield for Opening Day but he could designate hit until he’s ready. This pathway would see Roden fill in as the Blue Jays’ centre fielder for the time being.
A benefit from this would be getting Roden’s bat in the lineup every day. Moreover, except for Jonatan Clase and Myles Straw – who the Jays would also have to add to the 40-man roster, there isn’t a pure outfielder. Nathan Lukes, Joey Loperfido, and a few others could be in contention for centre field until Varsho is ready.
The downside of Roden as the everyday centre fielder is he doesn’t have much experience at the position. His only action as a centre fielder professional came last season with the Triple-A Buffalo Bisons, playing 31.2 innings in four games. That’s it. Before being drafted, Roden played three games in centre field in summer ball as well.
Roden’s bat is terrific, but he’s already average at best defensively in the right field and left field. He can play centre field in a bind but he isn’t a centre fielder.

The starting corner outfielder

The option the Blue Jays should pursue is this one – Alan Roden should be the Blue Jays’ everyday corner outfielder. It’s simple, his bat is too good not to have in the big leagues starting next Thursday. In this case, George Springer would move to centre field and eventually as the fourth outfield role once Varsho returns. At this point though, Roden is just the better player.
Springer’s decline is well documented. After slashing .267/.342/.471 with 25 home runs in 583 plate appearances back in 2022, he followed that up with a .258/.327/.405 slash line with 21 home runs in 2023.  The signs of a decline were there, but we didn’t know for sure.
His 2024 season left no doubt though, as Springer slashed .220/.303/.371 with 19 home runs in 613 plate appearances for a 95 wRC+. Springer’s Spring Training hasn’t restored hope, as he’s slashing .107/.324/.143 with no home runs in 37 plate appearances.
He’s still a big league player by all means but Roden is the better hitter and he needs big league at-bats. When the Blue Jays faced left-handed pitching, Springer could start for matchup reasons.

The fourth outfielder

Alternatively, the Blue Jays could use Roden as the fourth outfielder, meaning George Springer sticks as an everyday corner outfield while Joey Loperfido, Myles Straw, or Nathan Lukes start in centre field until Daulton Varsho is ready.
This wouldn’t be an ideal outcome as Roden needs consistent at-bats, whether it be in the minor leagues or the big leagues. What he can’t do is sit on the bench for an extended period of time.
There are better fourth outfielder options, such as Davis Schneider and Addison Barger for the fourth outfielder role. Honestly, either one of them should get more at-bats than Springer.

Return to the minor leagues

The last pathway for Roden is if the Blue Jays decide to send him back to Triple-A. While I’m not a fan of this pathway, it is better than getting inconsistent at-bats as he would if he were the fourth outfielder.
If the Jays do this, they have to show that they’ve learned from their mistakes. Last season, Spencer Horwitz torched Triple-A but it took until early June to call him up. By that time, the Jays were well out of the playoff race.
Say the Blue Jays send Roden down, if he continues to torch the International League, he has to be called up as soon as possible, especially if there are struggling outfielders.
All in all, Roden should be a starting corner outfielder for the Jays to start the season. He’s shown that his bat is good enough for MLB and he’d give the Blue Jays a lead-off hitter.
Ryley Delaney is a Nation Network writer for Blue Jays Nation, Oilersnation, and FlamesNation. They can be followed on Twitter @Ryley__Delaney.

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