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Instant Reaction: George Springer’s lead-off home run lifts Blue Jays over Marlins
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Photo credit: © Jim Rassol-Imagn Images
Ryley Delaney
Mar 16, 2026, 16:00 EDTUpdated: Mar 16, 2026, 17:27 EDT
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Rain, rain, go away.
On Monday afternoon, the Miami Marlins hosted the Toronto Blue Jays, with the Jays defeating the National League East team 5-4 in six innings, bringing their Spring Training record to 9-12-2. Let’s take a look at what went on in this one.
It took the Blue Jays just two pitches to take the lead, as George Springer hit his first home run of Spring Training on an inside fastball. The homer came off the bat at 105.2 mph and went a distance of 433 feet.
However, the Marlins tied the game in the bottom of the second, as former Blue Jay Otto López went deep off Lázaro Estrada for his first home run of Spring Training. They scored in the bottom of the second as well, as Daniel Johnson hit a single into the outfield to score Connor Norby.
The Blue Jays took over the game in the top of the third. Springer led it off with a single, followed by a Nathan Lukes single to put runners on the corners. Springer scored thanks to a wild pitch, and after Davis Schneider walked, Daulton Varsho drove him and Lukes in with his fifth double of the spring. A ground out from Myles Straw scored the Blue Jays’ fourth run of the inning and their fifth of the game.
That run also turned out to be the game-winning run. In the bottom of the third, Xavier Edwards doubled and was driven in by López. Before the game went into a rain delay, Johnson hit his first home run in the bottom of the fifth, cutting the Blue Jays’ lead to one. The last play of the game was a double from Norby, as the Jays were able to throw out Chris Arroyo at home plate to keep their lead.

Takeaways…

To the surprise of no one, Daulton Varsho had another strong game. He was 1-1 with a double, his fifth of the spring, as well as a walk. When you add four home runs to the mix, that gives Varsho an incredible 1.421 OPS over 40 plate appearances this season with just one strikeout.
Varsho had a strong Spring Training before the 2025 season, and that turned into a successful 2025 season when he was healthy. One player who didn’t have a good 2025 Spring Training was George Springer, as it looked like his decline would continue. Instead, he was the Blue Jays’ most important hitter last season, at least during the regular season. His home run on Monday is a good sign.
Eloy Jiménez put another ball in play that had an exit velocity higher than 100 mph, as his single came off the bat at 102.4 mph. That’s now 13 balls in play with an exit velocity higher than 100 mph, and 16 hard-hit balls for a 57.1 hard-hit %.
Along with Jiménez, Springer, Leo Jiménez, C.J. Stubbs, and Nathan Lukes all hit singles, with the latter hitting two to bring his batting average to .296. Jesús Sánchez, Varsho, and Davis Schneider drew walks.
On the pitching side of things, Lázaro Estrada made the start, going two and one-third innings with two earned runs allowed. Connor Seabold was the first out of the bullpen, going one and two-thirds innings with an earned run allowed and generating a game-high five whiffs. Joe Mantiply gave up an earned run in his inning of work, while Jesse Hahn allowed two hits in his two-thirds of an inning of work.
The Blue Jays are off on Tuesday, but return to action on Wednesday as they host the Baltimore Orioles at 1:07 PM ET. Josh Fleming will start for the Jays.
Ryley Delaney is a Nation Network writer for Blue Jays Nation, Oilersnation, and FlamesNation. She can be followed on Twitter @Ryley__Delaney.

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