SerpApi.Org
Ernie Clement has been one of the few players to step up in an otherwise frustrating season for the Toronto Blue Jays. The first-time All-Star is putting together a career year, batting .300 with 113 hits, eight home runs, 32 RBIs and a .754 OPS through 98 games.
Clement has also been the club’s hottest player at the plate recently, hitting .357 with 15 hits, one home run, three RBIs and six runs scored over his last 10 games, even as the Blue Jays have gone 4-6 during that stretch and enter Wednesday on a three-game losing streak.
Toronto has depended heavily on Clement throughout the season, and manager John Schneider has not hesitated to move him around the batting order in search of an offensive spark.
On Tuesday against the Rays, Clement hit third behind Nathan Lukes and Vladimir Guerrero Jr., but his night was overshadowed by a pair of defensive miscues in left field as cameras caught the 30-year-old visibly frustrated after the errors during the Blue Jays’ 12-2 defeat.
Looking to shake things up once again, the Blue Jays announced another lineup adjustment ahead of Wednesday’s series finale. Clement will bat leadoff, with Lukes moving into the No. 2 spot and Guerrero sliding to third.
It marks another change in a lineup that Schneider has shuffled repeatedly this month as Toronto searches for more consistent production.
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The latest lineup tweak comes at a critical time for a club that has managed just one win since returning from the All-Star break. The Blue Jays have dropped six of their last seven games and sit at 46-55, with their postseason hopes now hanging by a thread. Schneider is hoping his hottest hitter can help ignite an offense that ranks last in runs scored (400) this season.
