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Ernie Clement’s second half is reminiscent to Santiago Espinal’s final season and a half with the Blue Jays
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Photo credit: © William Purnell-Imagn Images
Cynthia Ryley Delaney
Sep 23, 2026, 09:00 EDTUpdated: Sep 22, 2026, 23:09 EDT
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Ernie Clement’s decline this season has been worrisome.
It took a while for Clement to find his spot in the big leagues. After playing 110 games for the Cleveland Guardians and Oakland Athletics between 2021 and 2022, Clement joined the Toronto Blue Jays organization on a minor league deal. The course of his career changed from there.
The utility infielder found some pop with the Bisons, then got a look with the team at the end of the 2023 season. Out of options to begin the 2024 season, Clement beat Santiago Espinal for the job, and the rest is history.
Unfortunately, it appears that history is starting to repeat itself, as Clement’s career trajectory is starting to look like Espinal’s tenure with the team.
Like Clement a few years later, Espinal spent several seasons in the minor league before becoming a regular on a big league roster in 2021. The Blue Jays had some question marks regarding the hot corner, and Espinal was the answer. 
Over 92 games, he slashed .311/.376/.405 with two home runs, paired with 7 Defensive Runs Saved, 5 Outs Above Average, and 4 Fielding Run Value at third base. Espinal finished the season with a 115 wRC+ and secured an everyday role on the 2022 Blue Jays.
After edging out Espinal for the final roster spot in 2024, Clement slashed .263/.284/.408 with 12 home runs in 452 plate appearances, paired with terrific defence at third base. Clement’s best season as a Blue Jay was by far the 2025 season. Defensively, he finished with 22 DRS, 13 OAA, and 9 FRV between second base, shortstop, and third.
But what Clement is remembered for is one of the best postseasons in franchise history. In their run to the World Series, Clement slashed .411/.416/.562 with a home run in 77 plate appearances, setting a Major League Baseball record of 30 postseason hits.
Offensively, Clement had a strong start to his 2026. Over his first 374 plate appearances, the utility player slashed .296/.318/.433 with 106 hits and 23 doubles, good for the sixth most hits and fifth-most doubles before the All-Star break. Clement earned a well-deserved trip to his first All-Star game.
Similarly, Espinal had a solid start to his 2022 season. Before the All-Star break, he was slashing .271/.320/.391 with six home runs in 353 plate appearances, good for a 103 wRC+. Like Clement four seasons later, Espinal earned a trip to his first and only trip to the All-Star Game.
Those similarities alone are interesting, but it’s the post-All-Star Game similarities that are far more concerning. Following his trip to Los Angeles to participate in the Midsummer Classic, Espinal slashed just .258/.328/.315 with a home run in his final 138 plate appearances, good for a 90 wRC+.
Espinal still finished the 2022 season strong defensively, ending the year 4 DRS, 9 OAA, and 7 FRV in 945 innings at the keystone, but the 2023 season was the start of his decline. Defensively, he finished the year with -3 DRS, -3 OAA, and -3 FRV split between second, third, and short. With the bat, Espinal slashed just .248/.310/.335 with two home runs in 254 plate appearances, a far cry from his prior two seasons.
Clement’s post-All-Star Game decline has been even more discouraging. Since July 17th, the Blue Jays’ utility player is slashing just .209/.243/.265 with a home run in 230 plate appearances, giving him a dismal 41 wRC+. While his K% of 9.1% is great, he is in turn swinging at awful pitches and rolling over on balls.
More staggering has been his defence. Espinal’s defensive issues only started the season after his trip to the All-Star Game. Clement’s defensive issues started in March and hasn’t let up.
Last season, no player in MLB finished with a higher DRS than Clement’s 22. So far in 2026, Clement has -2 DRS, -4 OAA, and -1 FRV in 953.2 innings at short, and -3 OAA and -3 FRV in 242 innings at short. He’s still been a solid defensive third baseman, but with Kazuma Okamoto plugged in as the everyday player at the hot corner, Clement is quickly turning back into a utility player.
Now there are some signs that Clement could rebound next season. Before the All-Star break, Clement was one of the best hitting second basemen in baseball. It’s been a rough past three months for Clement, but his first half of the season gives him some grace.
Another factor is that Espinal didn’t have to deal with the heartbreak that was the 2025 World Series. Clement came oh so close to walking off the Los Angeles Dodgers, which would’ve been just the 12th walk-off in World Series history. Instead, Andy Pages made a terrific catch, and we all know what happened next.
The way the Blue Jays lost the World Series has surely played a part in how poorly the offence has been this season, and injuries to key starters hasn’t helped either.
Clement has also played a whole lot of baseball. Last postseason, the Blue Jays played 18 of a possible 22 playoff games. That is in addition to a career-high 157 regular season games.  With the season ending in early November, Clement and the rest of the Blue Jays had a short off-season, which was made even shorter by Clement accepting a call-up to Team USA at the 2026 WBC.
Add in eight Spring Training games and 153 regular season games so far this season, it’s pretty easy to tell that fatigue has factored into Clement’s rough second half.
While Clement’s tough 2026 season is reminiscent to how Espinal’s Blue Jays’ tenure ended, his spot on the 2027 roster isn’t in peril. His role on the 2027 Blue Jays is in question though, as the Blue Jays need to change their offensive approach, which may require the team looking for outside help at the keystone. That would push Clement to a utility role, and at his best, he’s a darn good utility player.
Hopefully, next season goes better for Clement.
Cynthia Ryley Delaney is a Nation Network writer for Blue Jays Nation, DFOEdmonton, and DFOCalgary. She can be followed on Twitter @CynthiaRDelaney.
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