Blue Jays
• Marcus Semien played through pain last season.
On top of that, Semien experienced a slump at the plate during summer camp that carried over into the start of the season. The stress of how a slow start in a 60-game season would affect his numbers led to more hours hitting in the cage, which led to a strained side that cost him seven games, but, more crucially, caused him to play through the pain for a large chunk of the year.
There were days when instead of taking batting practice, he was receiving treatment. Before the game, he’d take 15 quick swings in the cage, then go out to face the best pitchers on the planet.
“It wasn’t necessarily a recipe for success,” he said. “But once that got healthy, things picked up and I wish the season kept going because I knew I was headed in the right direction.”
Semien’s production lines up with this narrative, a slow start to the season but finished at his average production level.