He doesn’t carry the superstar name of, say, an Edwin Encarnacion or Dexter Fowler, but Steve Pearce does profile as quite a useful player.
That’s why the Toronto Blue Jays inked the utility man to a two-year, $12.5-million deal on Monday.
Here’s a closer look at Pearce.
Name: Steve Pearce
Position: 1B, OF
Throws: Right
Bats: Right
Age: 33
Height: 5-foot-11 | Weight: 200 lbs.
Contract status: Will become free agent after 2018 season
Lefty masher
The most important thing you should know about Pearce is his ability to crush left-handed pitching, an area in which the Blue Jays struggled at times last season. In 603 career at-bats against southpaws, the right-handed hitter owns a .269 average with 31 homers, 99 RBIs and an excellent OPS of .852.
His numbers do fall off slightly against right-handed pitchers, as evidenced by his career .245 average and .728 OPS against them.
In 2016 he slashed .309/.411/.617 with seven homers and a 1.028 OPS in 81 at-bats against lefties, compared to .279/.357/.437 with six homers and a .795 OPS versus right-handers.
East Coast livin’
Pearce has been in the big leagues for parts of 10 seasons, but he’s spent the last five primarily in the American League East with stints in New York, Tampa Bay and Baltimore.
As a result, he’s very familiar with the division’s left-handed hurlers, including David Price of the Red Sox (31 at-bats against), CC Sabathia of the Yankees (25 at-bats) and Drew Smyly of the Rays (18 at-bats). Pearce has had moderate success versus those arms, with one homer against each, but it’s Blue Jays lefty J.A. Happ who he really enjoyed tormenting.
Pearce has faced Happ 33 times, more than any other pitcher in his career, and owns a .357 average with five homers and 12 RBIs. Luckily for Happ the two will now share the same clubhouse.
Versatility embodied
Pearce has the ability to play multiple positions and thus gives Blue Jays manager John Gibbons lots of defensive options to consider.
In 2016 Pearce fielded every position except for pitcher, catcher, shortstop and centre field. However, he’s spent the majority of his career at first base and left field. He’s considered by some to be a steady defender and will likely see plenty of time in a first base platoon with Justin Smoak next season.
Health status?
Pearce had surgery in late September to repair flexor tendons in his right elbow. The initial outlook suggested recovery time was four-to-six months, which would allow him to be ready for spring training, however it’s unclear if that timeline has changed.
When he finally joins the Blue Jays on the field, the Lakeland, Fla., native figures to fit right in with the gritty style embodied by teammates such as Josh Donaldson and Kevin Pillar. Pearce was a favourite of O’s manager Buck Showalter, gaining a reputation for his tough, hard-nosed play. He was described in a 2015 article by the Baltimore Sun as a player who will “run through a wall, play any position needed and won’t complain.”
“When you put your head on your pillow, you know Stevie is one of the guys who’s going to be as good as he’s capable of being,” Showalter told ESPN in 2014.
Swagger and Mojo
We’d be remiss if we didn’t mention this nugget: If Pearce’s Twitter bio is to be believed, the names of his sons are Mojo and Swagger. Throw in Troy Tulowitzki’s son Taz and we’re not sure there’s a better crop of baseball names in the league.