SEATTLE — How George Springer Lying on the ground in pain after being hit by a sinker to his right kneecap at 95.6 mph, most of the T-Mobile Park crowd cheered loudly. When he stood up and tried to check his leg at the first-base line, those cheers turned to boos.
“This is nonsense…” Ernie Clement he said in the visiting clubhouse following the Blue Jays' 6-2 loss to the Seattle Mariners in Game 5 of the American League Championship Series.
“I don’t know how you can boo someone who was lying on the ground. I don't understand this. I have a lot of respect for all Mariners fans, especially the ones I interacted with throughout the series. I thought they were amazing.
“But it was pretty classless.”
Added Miles Straw: “There's no room for that. How would these guys like it if they took a 95 to the kneecap and we cheered for it? That's complete bullshit. I'd love to see one of these fans hit a 96 somewhere and laugh at these guys and see how they feel about it. It's not a good feeling.”
The three ALCS games in Seattle this week featured energetic, sold-out crowds that rightfully celebrated a Mariners team that conquered a city that had never hosted a World Series game. Springer, a former member of the AL West rival Astros, was a constant target of harsh booing that likely stemmed from his involvement in an illegal sign-stealing scandal in Houston in 2017.
Blue Jays manager John Schneider acknowledged the “amazing atmosphere” at Seattle Stadium but expressed dissatisfaction with fans' treatment of Springer after he was hit by a Brian Woo pitch in the seventh inning on Friday.
“I think the fans who booed him need to look in the mirror and realize what kind of player he is, and I’ll leave it at that,” Schneider said, unprompted. “Because when a guy gets hit in the knee and he's in obvious pain and you have 40,000 people cheering, that's not the right thing to do.”
In the meantime, Springer underwent an X-ray, which came back negative. Schneider said he has a contusion on his right knee and will likely have to undergo additional testing when the club arrives in Toronto.
“George is as cool as they come,” the manager said. “I think it will really, really hurt him if he’s not in the lineup on Sunday.”
Springer certainly enjoyed the 2025 Renaissance campaign. The 36-year-old hit 32 home runs during the regular season and ranked third in MLB with an OPS of 0.959, behind only Shohei Ohtani (1.014) and Aaron Judge (1.145). Springer carried that success into the playoffs, recording three homers, five doubles, six RBIs and a .933 OPS in nine October games.
His fifth-inning double on Friday off Mariners reliever Matt Brush tied the game before the Blue Jays ultimately lost, putting the club on the brink of elimination, losing 3-2 in the ALCS.
Both clubs will travel to Toronto for a practice day at the Rogers Center on Saturday before the series resumes Sunday night.
It goes without saying that the Blue Jays' lineup without Springer, their power hitter, will be at a severe disadvantage.
“We've already been hit hard by losing Beau. [Bichette]” said Straw. “George is obviously one of our superstars and he's been there all season, so I just hope he's going to be okay.” Seeing him get back on his feet was a good sign. Obviously, seeing how he was limping and would probably be sore and sore for a while.
“But George is cool,” Straw continued. “He's been through a lot of things this year, as far as a lot of different injuries, and he tends to work through things like that. So I think there's a good chance we'll see him in Game 6. Just praying for the best with his recovery and what the renderings look like or something like that.”
