The Toronto Blue Jays have spent much of this season searching for offense, and while Vladimir Guerrero Jr. has struggled, Alejandro Kirk has started to supply exactly the kind of production they’ve needed.
Kirk has never been sold as a slugger, but he’s finding ways to turn contact into extra bases, and that has mattered for a team that has been starved for pop. Toronto is sitting a half-game out of a playoff spot going into Tuesday’s action, despite a lineup that has not generated much power.
That makes Kirk’s recent surge even more important. In Toronto’s current run, the club has won six straight series and worked its way back into the race, and Kirk has become a central part of that push. The Blue Jays have even used him at designated hitter on days when he isn’t catching.
His path back has not been simple. Kirk missed a long stretch after breaking his thumb when a foul ball ricocheted to the worst spot, and Brandon Valenzuela filled in during his absence.
When Kirk returned from the injured list, the timing wasn’t immediate, but that kind of reset usually takes time for a hitter to shake off. Now the 27-year-old looks fully settled in.
Over the Blue Jays’ last 30 games, Kirk has been phenomenal.
Alejandro Kirk gave the @BlueJays the lead in the 6th ...He extends it in the 8th 😤(MLB x @Goodyear) pic.twitter.com/ipld1mLIPt
Even when he isn’t getting a hit, he’s rarely giving away an at-bat. In that stretch, he has struck out fewer times than he has walked or driven in runners, and Toronto has benefited from that steady approach at the plate.
And the hot streak isn’t fading. Kirk is batting nearly .400 over his last 15 games and .435 over his last seven, with an OPS well over 1.100 in both spans.
If the Blue Jays can get through this week with three games at the Trop against the Tampa Bay Rays and another three in the Bronx against the New York Yankees, they’ll be in the playoffs - and Kirk’s bat could be the one that gets them there.
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