Blue Jays Swanson finds new catcher in Jets Eric Comrie
Is Erik Swanson feeling the love of Canada's national sport?
The relief pitcher, who recently re-upped with the Blue Jays on a one year, $3M deal to avoid arbitration, was recently spotted on the ice at Canada Life Centre, in a practice session with Eric Comrie, goaltender for the Winnipeg Jets.
They played catch.
Comrie, out on the ice in full Jets gear, was taking throws from Swanson, throwing into Comrie's mitt from the team benches.
It is the second time that Swanson, originally from Fargo, North Dakota, less than a four drive from Winnipeg, has been spotted at a Jets game as a member of the Blue Jays.
And while Swanson didn't actually lace up and show off his skating skills, his counterpart Comrie was in full on baseball mode, calling pitches and even blaming his goalie glove for missing a throw, which Swanson jokingly called a passed ball.
Many American players from the Blue Jays, especially those from the northern border states, have shown an affinity for hockey and become more fervent in their fandom while members of the Blue Jays.
2024 was an up-and-down season for Swanson. After going 4-2 with a 2.97 ERA in 69 games for the Jays in 2023, he struggled mightily in the first half of last year.
A lot of this was attributed to the fact that his son Toby was hit by a car in spring training.
With Swanson away from the team, he never was able to get his arm to speed.
After being sent down to the minors however, he recovered and was a welcome contribution in the second half of the season.
Look for him to be a 7th or 8th inning reliever again this year.
But who knows, maybe Swanson and Comrie are the dynamic duo we didn't know we needed.
| POLL | ||
DECEMBRE 21 | 196 ANSWERS Blue Jays Swanson finds new catcher in Jets Eric Comrie Should the Blue Jays sign Eric Comrie to be their back-up catcher? | ||
| Yes | 96 | 49 % |
| No | 100 | 51 % |
| List of polls | ||
