George Chelston Springer III...Graduated from Avon Old Farms High School in New Britain, CT, where he also played soccer...Drafted by Minnesota in the 48th round following his senior season but did not sign and went on to attend the University of Connecticut...Played three seasons at UConn before being drafted by Houston with the 11th overall selection in the 2011 First-Year Player Draft...Became the highest-drafted player in school history...In 2009, became the first player in UConn school history to be named the Big East Rookie of the Year...In 2011, was named a First Team All-American by Perfect Game USA, Louisville Slugger and the NCBWA, and was a semifinalist for both the Dick Howser Trophy and Golden Spikes Award...Both of his parents also attended UConn...His father, George II, played in the 1976 Little League World Series...His mother, Laura, is a former gymnast...George took gymnastics lessons starting at 18 months old until he was 12...Married to Charlise, who played softball at the University of Albany, and for Puerto Rico’s national team...His sister, Lena, also a softball player, played three years at Ohio State...Has been the Stuttering Association for the Young (SAY) spokesperson since 2014...Has hosted the annual “All-Star Bowling Event” since 2015...At the event, Springer, teammates, coaches and other professional athletes help to raise money for children and their families to attend Camp SAY, a summer camp for young people who stutter...Has been named an All-Star on three occasions (2017, 2018, 2019), won two Silver Slugger awards (2017, 2019) and was named 2017 World Series MVP...Signed a six-year, $150 million deal with the Blue Jays on Jan. 23, 2021, marking the largest contract in franchise history.
2022
Named an AL All-Star for the fourth time in his career...Hit his first home run of 2022 on April 10 vs. TEX, his 44th career leadoff homer, the most among active players and tying Brady Anderson for seventh all-time...Drove in all three runs in a 3-0 victory April 11 at NYY, going 3-for-5 with a double and a dinger, homering in consecutive games for the 26th time in his career...Hit his second leadoff blast on April 23 at HOU (45th career, seventh all-time), homering in his first at-bat against his former team...Belted a game-tying two-run homer with two outs in the bottom of the ninth April 26 vs. BOS, his fourth bomb of the year and the 200th of his career...Hit his fifth and sixth homers April 30 vs. HOU, his first multi-HR game of the year (19th career)...Drilled his third leadoff homer of season and the 46th of his career, tying Jimmy Rollins for the sixth most in MLB history...Earned Play of the Week for his diving catch to prevent the tying run May 1 vs. NYY...Was his second career Play of the Week (also: July 24, 2021 at NYM)...Led off the game May 10 at NYY with his seventh long ball...Marked the 47th leadoff shot of his career, tying Curtis Granderson for fifth-most all-time...Led off the game with his ninth homer May 26 at LAA...Marked his fifth leadoff jack of the year and the 48th of his career, tying him with Ian Kinsler for the fourth most in MLB history...Hit his seventh leadoff home run of the season and the 50th of his career June 5 vs. MIN...The seven leadoff homers surpassed Devon White (six in 1991) for the most in a single season in franchise history...Homered on the first pitch of the game for his 17th longball of 2022 on July 10 at SEA...Was his club-record eighth leadoff jack of the season (51st career)...Homered in consecutive games for the second time in 2022 (27th career)...Smacked his seventh career grand slam July 26 vs. STL, his first since Oct. 3, 2021 vs. BAL...Landed on the injured list from Aug. 5-14 with right elbow inflammation...Came off the bench to record his 1,000th career hit Aug. 17 vs. BAL, a single off Cionel Pérez...Was his first career pinch-hit knock...Went 5-for-5 with a double and an RBI on Aug. 18 at NYY, his fourth career 5+ hit game (last: May 12, 2019 vs. TEX)...Had a season-high 12-game hit streak from Aug. 4-28 (20-for-44, .455 AVG, 5XBH, 10RBI)...Drilled his 20th bomb of the season Sept. 13 vs. TB (2), reaching the mark for the seventh time in his career...Went 3-for-4 with a pair of homers and a walk on Sept. 25 at TB...Was his second multi-HR game of the year (April 30 vs. HOU) and the 20th of his career...Gave him 19 multi-HR games out of the leadoff spot, tied with Alfonso Soriano for second most in MLB history, one back of Mookie Betts (20)...Blasted his ninth leadoff home run on Sept. 27 vs. NYY...Gave him 52 career leadoff home runs, fourth most in MLB history (3rd: Craig Biggio - 53)...Was his 24th jack of the campaign, his third in the last three games...Notched his 25th home run on Sept. 30 vs. BOS, reaching the 25-HR mark for the fourth time in his career...Had multiple hits in five of his final eight games, going 12-for-32 (.375) with four home runs and eight RBI over that span (1.162 OPS).
2021
Held a .907 OPS, the 2nd-best mark of his career (.974 in 2019)...Produced a 1.077 OPS while playing in the outfield...Started the season on the injured list with a left oblique strain...Later sustained a quad injury while rehabbing...Activated on Apr. 28...Made his Blue Jays debut on Apr. 28 vs. WAS, finishing the night 0-for-4...Was the 1st time in his career that he had not reached base in his 1st game of a season...Picked up his 1st hit as a Blue Jay on Apr. 30 vs. ATL with a single in the 1st...Stole his 1st base of the season later in the inning...Also walked twice to finish 1-for-3...Hit his 1st and 2nd home runs as a Blue Jay on May 1 vs. ATL, his 15th career multi-homer game (last: Sept. 20, 2020 vs. ARI)...Hit his 2nd jack at 116.4 MPH, the hardest-hit ball of his career, and the 2nd hardest for a Jays home run in the Statcast era (Rowdy Tellez - 117.4)...Travelled a projected 470 feet, the 4th longest by a Toronto batter in the Statcast era...Hit only one of his 174 homers as an Astro in a 3-0 count, but hit his first two bombs as a Blue Jays batter in a 3-0 count...Became the 3rd MLB player (since tracking started in 1988) to hit two 3-0 homers in the same game, joining Chase Utley (June 28, 2007) and Derek Norris (May 11, 2014)...Placed back on the 10-day IL from May 3-Jun. 21 with a right quad strain...Went 3-for-17 with a double and an RBI in five rehab games with Triple-A Buffalo...Launched his 3rd home run on Jun. 25 vs. BAL, his first hit since coming off the IL on June 21, and his first hit since his pair of homers on May 1 vs. ATL...Hit his 4th longball on Jul. 2 vs. TB in his 1st game batting cleanup in 2021...Drilled his 5th home run on Jul. 3 vs. TB, homering in consecutive games for the 1st time of the campaign (22nd career)...Batted leadoff on Jul. 24 at NYM for the 1st time since May 2 and belted his 8th homer of the year...Was his 3rd jack in five games while batting 1st this season...Blasted his 10th & 11th home runs on Jul. 31 vs. KC, his 2nd multi-homer game of the year...Homered on the 1st pitch of the game, becoming the 10th Blue Jay (16th time) to do so (since 1988 when pitch tracking began), and the first since Steve Pearce on Apr. 8, 2018 at TEX...Marked his 40th career leadoff bomb, becoming the 8th player in MLB history to reach the mark...Named AL Player of the Week for Jul. 26-Aug. 1, his 3rd career POTW...Went 10-for-25 (.400) with eight runs, five doubles, three homers, and seven RBI (1.476 OPS)...Notched his 12th round-tripper on Aug. 3 vs. CLE, his 2nd leadoff homer of the season and the 41st of his career...Launched the 1st pitch of the game 439 feet over the center-field wall on Aug. 4 vs. CLE, his 13th homer of the season...Became the 3rd player in team history to homer on the 1st pitch of a game multiple times in a season (also: Jul. 31 vs. KC), joining Alex Rios in 2007 and Jose Reyes in 2014...Notched leadoff homers in consecutive games, the 4th Blue Jay ever to accomplish the feat (Damaso Garcia in 1983, Jose Cruz Jr. in 2000, Devon Travis in 2016)...Marked his 3rd leadoff jack of 2021 (42nd of his career)...Drilled his 14th home run on Aug. 8 vs. BOS, a go-ahead three-run bomb in the 8th...Also singled, walked, and reached on an error, scoring 4+ runs for the first time of the year (7th career), and the first time since May 12, 2019 vs. TEX...Named AL Player of the Week for Aug. 2-8, becoming the 1st player in team history to take consecutive weekly honors...Hit .364 (12-for-33) with three doubles, a triple, three homers (two leadoff homers), and 11 RBI (1.177 OPS)...Crushed his 15th and 16th home runs on Aug. 11 at LAA, both solo shots, for his 3rd multi-homer game of the season (17th career)...Landed on the IL for a 3rd time from Aug. 15-29 with a left knee sprain...Snapped a season-long 12-game homerless drought with a two-run bomb in the 7th inning on Sept. 25 at MIN...Went 3-for-4 on Sept. 26 at MIN with his 19th blast, homering in consecutive games for the 3rd time in 2021 (24th career)...Notched his 2nd four-hit game of 2021 on Oct. 2 vs. BAL, also blasting his 20th home run of the year...Reached the 20-homer mark for the 6th time in his career...Hit his 21st & 22nd home runs on Oct. 3 vs. BAL, a leadoff homer in the 1st and a grand slam in the 3rd...Marked his 4th leadoff bomb of the year (43rd career) and his 6th career grand slam...Named AL Player of the Week for Sept. 27-Oct. 3, his 5th career award and 3rd this season...Became the first AL player to win three weekly honors in a single season since Justin Verlander in 2011...Joined Jose Bautista (2010) as the only players in franchise history to win the award three times in a season...Hit .500 (13-for-26) with eight runs, three doubles, three homers, and 10 RBI in six games (.962 SLG, 1.497 OPS)...Had 36 of his last 61 hits go for extra bases (18-2B, 1-3B, 17 HR).
2020
Batted .265 with six doubles, two triples, 14 home runs, 32 RBI, 24 walks and a .899 OPS over 51 games...Had a 12-game hitting streak from Sept. 12-25, batting .367 (18-for-49) with six home runs, nine RBI and a 1.183 OPS... was the longest hitting streak by an Astro in 2020...Walked, scored two runs and hit a leadoff homer on Sept. 15 vs. TEX...marked his 2nd consecutive game with a home run... was his 11th career leadoff blast against the Rangers...marked the 2nd most leadoff homers against any single opponent in MLB history (Rickey Henderson - 12 vs. CLE)...gave him 39 career leadoff home runs, 8th most in MLB history and trailing only Rickey Henderson (73), Ian Kinsler (48) and Brady Anderson (44) for 4th most in the AL...trailed only Craig Biggio (53) in Astros history...the 39 leadoff blasts are the most by any player since he entered the Majors in 2014...Went 3-for-4 with two homers on Sept. 20 vs. ARI...notched his 2nd career inside-the-park home run (also May 14, 2019 at DET)...was his 2nd multi-homer game of the season, also doing so in Game 2 of a doubleheader on Sept. 5 vs. LAA... became the 3rd Astros player to record a multi-homer game that included an inside-the-park home run, joining Ken Caminiti (2x: May 22, 1993 at SD and July 3, 1994 vs. CHC) and Jimmy Wynn (July 30, 1967 vs. NYM)...In 25 games in September, batted .316 (31-for-98) with two doubles, two triples, nine home runs, 15 RBI, nine walks and a 1.033 OPS...his nine home runs tied for 2nd most in the AL behind only José Ramírez...Batted .263 (15-for-57) with a double, four home runs, 10 RBI and a .791 OPS during the postseason...Went 4-for-5 with a double, RBI and a run scored in Game 1 of the ALDS at OAK...became the 6th Astros player to record four-or-more hits in a postseason game...Hit two home runs in Game 2 of the ALDS...became the 7th Astros player to record a multi-homer game in the playoffs...Belted his 1st career postseason leadoff home run in Game 5 of the ALCS vs. TB...Joined Craig Biggio (2004 NLCS Game 7) as the only players in Astros history to hit a leadoff homer in the postseason...the blast was the 10th leadoff homer on the 1st pitch of a postseason game since pitch counts were first tracked in 1988, and the first since David Freese in 2018 World Series Game 5...gave him the franchise lead in postseason home runs (19) and tied him with Albert Pujols for 4th all-time, while his 17 homers and 34 RBI as a leadoff hitter in the postseason marked the most in MLB history.
2019
Put together the finest regular season of his career in what was his sixth-career MLB season...was named to the AL All-Star team for the third time in his career, and made his second All-Star Game start...led the Majors with 12 leadoff home runs, falling one shy of the MLB record of 13 set by Alfonso Soriano in 2003...joined Soriano (also 12 in 2007) and Brady Anderson (12 in 1996) as the only players in MLB history with at least 12 leadoff homers in a season...moved into the top 10 players all-time in leadoff home runs, moving into a tie for ninth all-time with Charlie Blackmon (36HR)...among AL players all-time (36), moved into fifth in leadoff homers, just one shy of Ichiro Suzuki for fourth place...tied the Major League record for total homers hit by a leadoff hitter over a single season (39), tying Alfonso Soriano's record set in 2006...posted the sixth-most RBI by a leadoff hitter in a single season in MLB history (96), behind only Charlie Blackmon in 2017 (103), Darin Erstad in 2000 (100), Alfonso Soriano (99 in 2002), Nomar Garciaparra in 1997 (98) and Jacoby Ellsbury (97 in 2011)... ranked eighth in the Majors in OPS (.974) and eighth in slugging percentage (.591)...among AL players, ranked fourth in OPS, fourth in slugging, fifth in homers and seventh in on-base percentage (.383)...set career highs in homers, RBI, batting average, OBP, SLG and OPS...ranked fourth among AL center fielders in defensive runs saved (6)...moved into seventh place in Astros history in career homers (160)...surpassed Doug Rader (128), Carlos Lee (133), Richard Hidalgo (134), Jose Cruz (138) and Bob Watson (139) on the list this season...ranked third in the AL in OPS with runners in scoring position (1.116, .423 OBP/.693 SLG)...made his fifth consecutive Opening Day roster...left the game on May 19 at BOS with lower back stiffness...left the game in the 8th inning on May 24 vs. BOS...was placed on the 10-day Injured List with a strained left hamstring on May 25...activated from the IL on June 24...missed three games from Sept. 5-7 after crashing into the center field wall on Sept. 3 at MIL...made his fifth-consecutive Opening Day start on March 28 at TB and hit a three-run homer off Blake Snell in the Astros 5-1 win...was his third-consecutive Opening Day with a home run...joined Jeff Bagwell (1994-96) as the only players in club history to homer in three-consecutive Opening Day games...ranks tied for second in Opening Day homers all-time with Richard Hidalgo, Glenn Davis and Jose Cruz, behind Jeff Bagwell (4HR)...joined Khris Davis as the only Major League players to homer on Opening Day in each of the last three seasons...hit his his first leadoff homer of the season on April 1 at TEX off Drew Smyly...was his sixth-career leadoff homer at Globe Life Park, the most by any visiting player in Arlington all-time...reached base safely in each of the Astros first 15 games of the season, becoming the first leadoff hitter in franchise history to reach in each of the club's first 15 games of a season...passed the previous club record of 11 games, which was set by Craig Biggio in 1998...went 5x5 with two home runs, including a leadoff homer, five runs scored and 4 RBI on May 12 vs. TEX...became the first player in club history to record five hits and score five runs in the same game... tied a franchise record for runs scored in a game (last reached by Springer on May 26, 2014 at KC)...marked his third-career game with at least five hits, tying Cesar Cedeño for the most five-hit games in club history..on May 12, became the third leadoff hitter in MLB history with a five-hit, two-homer, five-run game, joining Matt Carpenter (6/26/18 vs. CLE) and Tim Teufel (9/16/83 vs. TOR)...was his ninth-career multi-homer game...was named the AL Co-Player of the Week for the week of May 12...marked his second-career weekly award (also May 29-June 4, 2017)...in seven games during the week, led all American League players in batting (.519, 14x27), hits (14), homers (5) and OPS (1.711)...three of his five homers were leadoff shots...during the week, recorded a hit in six straight at-bats, scored a run in six straight plate appearances and reached in seven straight PA's..recorded his first-career inside-the-park home run on May 14 at DET...was his first-career inside-the-park homer, and first by an Astro since Carlos Correa hit one on April 3, 2018 vs. BAL...became the first Astros player to hit an inside-the-park homer on the road since Lance Berkman on June 17, 2002 at MIL...set club records for most homers over the first 43 games of a season (16), and most homers over the first 45 games of a season (17)...became the first leadoff hitter in MLB history with 17 HR over the first 45 games of an individual season...at the time of his placement on the IL on May 25, was leading the AL in homers (17), RBI (43) and total bases (119) while ranking second in runs (41), SLG (.654) and OPS (1.032)...made his second-career All-Star Game start, going 1x2 in right field...hit a walkoff RBI single in the 10th inning on July 7 vs. LAA...posted his 10th-career multi-homer game on July 15 at LAA...hit a game-winning solo homer in the top of the 10th inning on Sept. 2 at MIL...was his 30th HR of the season...was his fourth-career extra-innings homer...reached base in 32 consecutive starts from Aug. 6-Sept. 17, the longest of his career...homered in each of his first three plate appearances on Sept. 22 vs. LAA, his first-career three-homer game...was the 14th regular season three-homer game in Astros history, and the second of the season (also Yordan Alvarez on Aug. 10 at BAL)...became the first leadoff hitter in Astros history with a three-homer game...went 4x4 on the final day of the season, becoming the second player in club history with a four-hit game on the final day of the year, joining Joe Morgan...hit 10 home runs in September, tying the third-most over a single month of September in club history with Evan Gattis (2016), behind Lance Berkman (11 in 2005) and Richard Hidalgo (11 in 2000)...batted .205 (15x73) with four doubles, four homers, eight RBI and three stolen bases across 18 postseason games...had a strong World Series performance, batting .296 (8x27) with six extra-base hits (4 doubles, 2 HR), four RBI and a 1.108 OPS (.441 OBP/.667 SLG)...became the second player in MLB history to record at least six XBH and six walks in a single World Series, joining Barry Bonds in 2002...homered in Game 1 of the World Sereis, giving him five straight games with a home run in the World Series, a new MLB record streak...went 2x4 with a walk and two steals in Game 3 of the WS...became the first player in Astros history with multiple steals in a World Series game, and the 4th to do so in a postseason game (first since Carlos Beltran, 2004 NLCS Game 6)...hit a two-run homer off Daniel Hudson in Game 5 of the World Series, the seventh World Series homer of his career, putting him into a tie for 10th place on MLB's alltime World Series home runs list with Hank Bauer, Goose Goslin, Gil McDougald and Chase Utley...gave him the most career homers in the World Series by a leadoff hitter in MLB history (7), directly ahead of Bauer (6) and Lenny Dykstra (6)...posted multiple extra-base hits in Game 6 of the WS, his fifth-career multi-XBH game in the WS, tying Babe Ruth, Duke Snider and Lou Gehrig for the most all-time...played in three rehab games with Double A Corpus Christi, going 4x10 (.400) with two HR, five RBI and one stolen base...hit two homers in his first rehab game.
2018
Was named an AL All-Star for the second time in his career in what was his fifth-career MLB season... ranked second in the AL in leadoff home runs (6) behind Francisco Lindor (9)...now has 24 career leadoff homers, which ranks 15th all-time in AL history...ranked tied for seventh in the AL in runs scored with 103... was his third-straight 100-run season...became the fourth player in franchise history with three consecutive 100-run seasons, joining Lance Berkman (2001-04), Craig Biggio (1995-99) and Jeff Bagwell (1996-01)...made his fourth consecutive Opening Day roster...was placed on the 10-day Disabled List with a sprained left thumb on Aug. 17....missed five straight games from Aug. 20-25 with a sore left quad...made his fourth consecutive Opening Day start on March 29 at TEX and hit a leadoff homer off Cole Hamels in the Astros 4-1 win...was his 100th career home run and his second consecutive Opening Day leadoff home run...per the Elias Sports Bureau, became the first player in MLB history to hit a leadoff homer on consecutive Opening Day games...also became the first player to hit a leadoff homer on the season opener of a defending World Series champion... became the second player in franchise history with multiple career Opening Day homers (also Terry Puhl, 1978, 1980)...recorded his eighth-career multi-homer game on April 13 vs. TEX...tied Lee May, Jose Cruz and Cesar Cedeño for the ninth-most multi-HR games in club history... hit his third leadoff homer of the season on April 16 at SEA, his fourth-career leadoff homer at Safeco Field, the most all-time at the venue by a visiting player...was his sixth-career leadoff homer vs. Seattle, the second-most all-time against the club behind Rickey Henderson (7)...played in his 500th career game on April 17 at SEA...his 103 career homers marked the second-most in franchise history through a player's first 500 games, behind Lance Berkman (107)...went 6x6 with a double, three-run homer, four singles and four runs scored on May 7 at OAK, setting a franchise record for hits in a 9.0-inning game...joined Joe Morgan as the only players in club history to record six hits in a game, as Morgan did so in a 12.0-inning contest on July 8, 1965 at MIL...was the 65th time in MLB history that a player recorded six hits in a 9.0-inning game...went 9x14 with a home run, five RBI and five runs scored in the Astros series at OAK from May 7-9...became the first Astros player with at least nine hits and five runs in a single three-game series since Ty Wigginton did so in an August 2008 series vs. ARI...hit his eighth-career leadoff homer against the Rangers on June 10, surpassing Rickey Henderson (7) for the most leadoff homers all-time against the club... combined with Alex Bregman and Jose Altuve for back-to-back-to-back home runs on June 20 vs. TB, the sixth time in franchise history that the Astros combined for three consecutive home runs...was voted to the AL All-Star Team via the player vote...became the first Astros outfielder to be named to two consecutive All-Star Teams since Lance Berkman from 2000-01...hit back-to-back home runs with Alex Bregman in the 2018 All-Star Game...became the first pair of teammates to hit back-to-back home runs in an All-Star Game since Dodgers IF Steve Garvey and OF Jimmy Wynn did so in the 1975 All-Star Game (ESPN Stats & Info)...hit his fifth-career grand slam on July 21 at LAA...was his fifth-career road grand slam, surpassing Jeff Bagwell (4) for the most road grand slams in club history...batted .301 (50x166) with seven homers, 25 RBI and an .850 OPS (.374 OBP/.476 SLG) in 44 games following the All-Star Break...hit .400 (14x35) with six runs, three doubles, four homers, eight RBI and a 1.276 OPS (.447 OBP/.829 SLG) in eight postseason games...moved up several Astros postseason lists... became the club's all-time leader in postseason homers (11), doubles (10), extra-base hits (15) and hits (40)... moved into a tie for 12th place all-time among AL players in postseason homers....tied Lenny Dykstra (9) for the most postseason homers in MLB history by a leadoff hitter...recorded a hit in all eight postseason games, stretching his postseason hitting streak to 14 games, tied for the eighth-longest in MLB history and the longest in Astros history...went 2x4 with a single, two runs scored and a solo homer in Game 1 of the ALDS vs. CLE... marked his fifth-consecutive postseason game with a homer...became the third player in MLB history to hit a homer in five consecutive playoff games, joining Carlos Beltrán (2004) and Daniel Murphy (6 games in 2015)... went 3x6 with two solo home runs in Game 3 of the ALDS at CLE...became the fourth player in club history with a multi-homer game in the postseason...also Jose Altuve (3 in Game 1 of the 2017 ALDS), Carlos Correa (Game 4 of the 2015 ALDS) and Carlos Beltrán (Game 5 of the 2004 NLDS)...per the Elias Sports Bureau, became the fourth player in MLB history with seven homers in a seven-game span in the postseason, joining Carlos Beltrán (2004), Reggie Jackson (1977-78) and Lou Gehrig (1928-32)...recorded multiple RBI in each game from Game 3 of the ALDS through Game 2 of the ALCS, the longest streak in franchise history and one game shy of the MLB record (Reggie Sanders, 2005)...homered in Game 4 of the ALCS vs. BOS, his 31st career game in the postseason...marked the third-most postseason HR by a player within his first 31 career games in the playoffs all-time behind Carlos Beltrán (14) and Nelson Cruz (13).
2017
Was the best leadoff hitter in the American League, in a year where he made his first career All-Star Team, received a Silver Slugger Award, and was named MVP of the World Series...crested the 30-homer mark for the first time in his career, belting 34 homers, which ranked tied for 10th in the AL and led the Astros...marked the most homers by an Astros player since Chris Carter hit 37 in 2014...hit 30 of his homers as an outfielder, which marked the most by an Astros outfielder since Carlos Lee hit 31 in 2007...hit all 34 of his homers out of the leadoff spot in the lineup, which set a franchise record and tied the seventh-most homers ever recorded by a leadoff hitter in MLB history...the only AL players to hit more homers out of the leadoff spot in a single season were Alfonso Soriano (38 in 2002, 35 in 2003) and Brady Anderson (35 in 1996)...hit nine leadoff homers, the most in the Majors...tied the fourth-most leadoff homers by a player in AL history with Rickey Henderson (1986), behind only Alfonso Soriano (13 in 2003), Brady Anderson (12 in 1996) and Jacque Jones (11 in 2002)...his nine leadoff homers also set a new franchise record, surpassing the previous record of eight, reached by Craig Biggio in 2001 and himself in 2016...his 17 leadoff homers from 2016-17 were the most in the Major Leagues... finished tied for second in the AL in runs (112) with Jose Altuve behind Aaron Judge (128)...became the second player in club history to reach 112 runs in consecutive seasons, joining Jeff Bagwell (1998-2001) and Craig Biggio (1995-99)...ranked ninth in the AL in OPS (.889)...ranked among the top-five AL outfielders in runs (2nd), homers (5th), OBP (5th), slugging percentage (5th) and OPS (5th)...set career highs in homers, RBI (85), batting average (.283), slugging percentage (.522) and OPS...ranked second in the AL in batting average with runners in scoring position and two outs (.392, 20x51)...led the AL in OPS in those situations (1.270)...posted a careerlow 17.6% strikeout rate...was one of the most strikeout-prone players in the Majors in his 2014 rookie year...has lowered his strikeout rate in every year of his career...33% in 2014, 24.2% in 2015, 23.9% in 2016, 17.6% in 2017... improved his strikeout rate over the course of the season...posted an 11.2% strikeout rate in the second-half of the season, which was the sixth-best mark in the AL...posted a 22% strikeout rate in the first half...became the third Astros player with 27 homers prior to the All-Star Break, joining Lance Berkman (2002) and Jeff Bagwell (1994, 1999)...became the first player in MLB history with 27 homers from the leadoff sport prior to the All-Star Break...posted a career-high contact rate (78.3%) and a career-low swing rate (44.9%)...made his third consecutive Opening Day roster and start...left the game on April 22 at TB with discomfort in his left hamstring... was not placed on the DL but missed three games...placed on the 10-day DL with left quad discomfort on July 28...activated on Aug. 9...hit a leadoff homer on Opening Day on April 3 vs. SEA off RHP Felix Hernandez... became the second player in franchise history to hit a leadoff homer on Opening Day, joining Terry Puhl, who did so twice (April 10, 1980 vs. LAD and April 6, 1978 at CIN)...hit a walkoff homer in the 13th inning on April 5 vs. SEA...was his fourth-career walkoff hit and second-career walkoff homer...the last Astro to hit a walkoff homer that early in a season was Richard Hidalgo in the second game of the 2001 season...also hit a two-run double on April 5 vs. SEA, driving in all five of Houston's runs...the five RBI tied his career high...became the first player to record at least five RBI, all from the leadoff spot in the lineup, and driving in all of his team's runs since Rafael Furcal on July 9, 2004...hit a leadoff homer off LHP Ariel Miranda on April 6 vs. SEA...per Elias, became the first player in club history to hit a leadoff homer one game after hitting a walkoff homer...the last MLB player to do that was Scott Hairston for the Padres from Aug. 3-4, 2007...became the first player in MLB history to hit a leadoff homer one game after hitting a walkoff homer in the month of April...prior to Springer, the last time an AL player hit two leadoff HR within his club's first four games of a season was in 2011 (Sizemore and Kinsler)... on April 9 vs. KC, hit a leadoff homer off RHP Nate Karns and scored the winning run in the 12th inning...became the first player in Major League history to hit three leadoff homers within his team's first seven games of a season...the only player in MLB history to record three leadoff homers within his team's first 10 games, prior to Springer, was Brian Downing in 1987...tied the club record for most homers within the Astros first seven games of a season (4) and most homers within the team's first 12 games of a season (6)...hit his fourth leadoff homer of the year on April 11 at SEA off LHP Ariel Miranda...became the first player in Major League history to record four leadoff homers within his team's first nine games of a season...played in a Major League-leading 205 team games from 2016 through April 22...was the sixth-longest streak in club history...had a multi-homer game (4th career) in the second game of Houston's doubleheader at NYY on May 14...hit his fifth leadoff homer of the season and then homered again to lead off the 2nd inning...per Elias, became the fourth player in MLB's expansion era (since 1961) to hit home runs to lead off each of the first two innings of a game...joined Chad Curtis (1995), Stan Javier (1999), and Manny Machado (2015)...additionally, became the fourth player in Astros history to homer in the 1st and 2nd innings of a game (Elias), joining Jose Altuve (2016), Lance Berkman (2002) and Craig Biggio (1997)...his two homers snapped a 19-game homerless streak which tied the longest of his career (went homerless over his first 19 games of his career in 2014)...went 4x4 with two homers on May 31 at MIN...was his fifth career multi-homer game...tied a franchise record by reaching in six plate appearances, which was last accomplished on Sept. 20, 2007 by J.R. Towles and Cody Ransom...one of his homers went 473 feet, per Statcast...named the AL Player of the Week for the week of May 29-June 4...during the week, had multiple hits in all six of the Astros games, hitting .500 (15x30) with 11 runs scored, five home runs, nine RBI and a 1.565 OPS (.531 OBP/1.033 SLG)...led the AL in runs, hits, home runs, slugging and OPS during the week... marked his first career Player of the Week award...went 3x5 with two homers, including his sixth leadoff homer of the season, on June 4 at TEX...hit his 82nd career homer in what was his 400th career game on June 11 vs. LAA...marked the second-most homers by an Astros player through his first 400 games, trailing only Lance Berkman (89)...hit 11 homers in June, the most in the AL...marked the most June homers by an Astro since Moises Alou hit 12 in June of 2001...walked in five straight games from June 24-29, tying the longest streak of his career...was elected to start the All-Star Game via the fan vote...became the first Astro to start the All-Star Game in the outfield since Lance Berkman in 2004...on July 7 at TOR, became the first player in club history to have a four-hit, five-RBI game out of the leadoff spot int he lineup...became the 13th player in MLB history to do so, and the first since Charlie Blackmon in 2014...hit a grand slam on Sept. 27 at TEX...was his fourth career grand slam...named the Willie Mays World Series MVP as part of a postseason in which he hit .292 (21x72) with five doubles, six homers, nine RBI and a .997 OPS (.386 OBP/.611 SLG)...became the eighth outfielder to win the World Series MVP award, joining Hall of Famers Frank Robinson (1966), Roberto Clemente (1971) and Reggie Jackson (1973 and 1977), as well as Pedro Guerrero (1981), Manny Ramirez (2004), Jermaine Dye (2005) and Ben Zobrist (2016)...tied Carlos Beltrán (2004) for the franchise record for extra-base hits in a single postseason (11)...overall, it tied for the fourth-most extra-base hits in a single postseason in MLB history, trailing only David Freese (14 in 2011), Nelson Cruz (13 in 2010) and Albert Pujols (13 in 2011)...hit .379 (11x29) in the World Series with three doubles, five homers, seven RBI and eight runs scored, becoming the first player ever to reach those totals in a single World Series...his eight extra-base hits in the World Series marked a new MLB record... surpassed Willie Stargell, who posted seven in the 1979 World Series...his five home runs in the World Series tied Hall of Famer Reggie Jackson (1977) and Chase Utley (2009) for the most in a single Fall Classic...his five homers from the leadoff spot set a new record for a World Series, eclipsing the previous mark of four set by Lenny Dykstra during the 1993 Fall Classic...his six home runs from the leadoff spot in the postseason also tied Dykstra's postseason record of six set in 1993...homered in four consecutive World Series games, becoming the first player to do so in a single World Series...joined Hall of Famers Lou Gehrig and Reggie Jackson as the only players to homer in four consecutive World Series games overall...totaled a record 29 total bases during the World Series, eclipsing the previous mark of 25 shared by Hall of Famers Reggie Jackson (1977) and Willie Stargell (1979)...became the first player ever to record an extra-base hit in six consecutive World Series games... tied a franchise record by recording multiple hits in three straight postseason games...did so twice: Games 5-7 of the World Series, and Games 2-4 of the ALDS...hit a go-ahead, 11th inning two-run homer in Game 2 of the World Series at LAD...gave the Astros their first World Series victory in franchise history...went 2x3 with a solo homer, three walks and three runs scored in Game 5 of the World Series...joined Barry Bonds (2002) as the only players in World Series history to have a game with a homer, three walks and three runs scored...following the season was named the winner of the NY Chapter of the BBWAA Arthur and Milton Richman "You Gotta Have Heart Award" for overcoming challenges of his stutter...was also named the Boston Chapter of the BBWAA "New England Player of the Year".
2016
Was a finalist for an AL Rawlings Gold Glove Award, and was one of five AL Final Vote candidates for the All-Star Game...played in all of Houston's 162 games, becoming the seventh player in club history to play all 162 games of a season, joining Carlos Lee (2007), Craig Biggio (1996-97, 1992), Jeff Bagwell (1999, 1996-97, 1992), Steve Finley (1992), Bill Doran (1987) and Enos Cabell (1978)...was tied for the AL lead in games played with Alcides Escobar and Jonathan Schoop...led the Majors in plate appearances (744), which ranked tied for second all-time in club history for a single season with Craig Biggio's 1997 season, behind only Biggio's 1999 season (749)...hit eight leadoff home runs, which tied a single-season franchise record set by Craig Biggio in 2001... became one of seven players in AL history to record at least eight leadoff homers in a season, joining Ian Kinsler (2016), Alfonso Soriano (2002-03), Jacque Jones (2002), Chuck Knoblauch (1999), Brady Anderson (1996) and Rickey Henderson (1986, 1993)...set career highs in nearly every offensive category, including games (162), atbats (644), hits (168), doubles (29), triples (five), homers (29), RBI (82) and walks (88)...ranked tied for sixth in the Majors and fifth in the AL in runs scored (116)...marked the most runs by an Astros player since Jeff Bagwell (126) and Craig Biggio (118) surpassed 116 in 2001...hit 28 of his 29 homers as an outfielder, the most by an Astros player since Carlos Lee hit 31 in 2007...became the second outfielder in club history with a 29-homer, 116-run season, joining Richard Hidalgo (44 homers, 118 runs in 2000)...ranked tied for fourth in the AL in walks (88)... marked the most walks by an Astros player since Lance Berkman walked 97 times in 2009...made 147 starts in right field and one in center field...among AL outfielders, ranked second in walks, tied for third in runs, tied for fifth in homers, sixth in OBP, seventh in OPS, eighth in RBI, eighth in hits and ninth in slugging...ranked tied for fifth among AL outfielders in assists (12), which was good for third among AL right fielders...marked the most assists by an Astros right fielder since Hunter Pence had 16 in 2009...ranked second among AL right fielders in fielding percentage with a .994 mark (2E/318TC)...became the second right fielder in club history to make two errors or less on over 300 total chances, joining Hunter Pence, who made one error on 357 total chances in 2008 (.997 fielding percentage)...became the first player in franchise history to hit three grand slams in a single season...per the Elias Sports Bureau, became the second player in Major League history to hit a grand slam as a visitor at both Fenway Park and Yankee Stadium (new or old) in the same season, joining Al Rosen (1951)... ranked tied for second in the Majors in games with at least four RBI (five), behind only Kendrys Morales (six)... finished second to Toronto's Michael Saunders in the AL Final Vote balloting...led all 10 AL and NL players in text voting, while finishing second in Twitter voting...made his second consecutive Opening Day roster and start...hit his first career grand slam on April 7 at NYY...was the first grand slam in the Majors in 2016...homered in three straight games from April 16-19...hit the 1,500th home run in Minute Maid Park history on May 11 vs. CLE...also became the first Astros player since Lance Berkman (May 2, 2010) to homer once and walk four times in a single game...recorded four RBI in consecutive games from May 13-14, becoming the first Astros player to do so since Carlos Lee from Sept. 22-23, 2011...hit a two-run homer on May 13 at BOS off his former college teammate at UConn, Matt Barnes...recorded the four RBI on May 14 at BOS with a grand slam, his second of the season...posted his third-career multi-homer game on May 26 vs. BAL...hit his first career walkoff homer on June 1 vs. ARI in the 11th inning...became the second-quickest player in club history to reach 50 career home runs, reaching the mark in his 241st career game on June 8 at TEX...the only player in club history to reach 50 career homers in a fewer amount of games was Lance Berkman (231 games from 1999-2001)...went 3x5 with a triple, a walk, two runs scored and a grand slam, tying his career high with five RBI on June 24 at KC...tripled to lead off the game, then hit a grand slam later in the 1st inning...per Elias, became the first leadoff hitter to hit a grand slam in the 1st inning of a game since the Seattle's Danny Tartabull on April 15, 1986 at CAL...also became the first player in the modern era (since 1900) to hit a triple and a grand slam in the 1st inning of a game...only one other player in the divisional era (1969 to date) had a triple and grand slam in any inning and that was Brandon Inge (April 23, 2004 vs. CLE, 6th inning)...recorded three RBI in both games of a doubleheader vs. MIN on Aug. 11...became the third player in club history to record three RBI out of the leadoff spot in the lineup in consecutive games, joining Joe Morgan (three games in 1965) and Jimmy Wynn (1966)...in Game 2 of the doubleheader, became the third player in club history to record three RBI and three extra-base hits out of the leadoff spot, joining Craig Biggio (five times, last, 2004) and Joe Morgan (two times, last, 1967)...recorded a hit in seven straight at-bats from Sept. 24-26...was one hit shy of tying the franchise record set by Lance Berkman, who hit in eight consecutive at-bats from May 4-8, 2008...ended the season with four consecutive multi-hit games (Sept. 24-27).
2015
In only his second Major League season, continued to show the power, on-base ability, speed and elite defense he exhibited as a rookie in 2014...finished fifth among AL outfielders in OBP (.367) and eighth in OPS (.826)...posted career highs in games played (102), hits (107), runs (59), doubles (19), walks (50), steals (16), batting average (.276), OBP (.367) and OPS (.826)...hit .296 (40x135) with a .936 OPS (.403 OBP/.533) against southpaws...batted .319 (66x207) with an .880 OPS (.383 OBP/.498 SLG) on the road...his .817 career OPS (.354 OBP/.463 SLG) is the highest by an Astros outfielder over his first two Major League seasons since Hunter Pence (.833, 2007-08)...his 36 home runs within his first 180 games in the Majors set a club record...the previous record was held by Glenn Davis (35 HR)...36 home runs rank second in club history through a player's first two seasons, behind Pence (42)...hit leadoff in 46 games...his .379 on-base percentage as the leadoff hitter ranked fourth in the AL...made his first career Opening Day roster and start...was placed on the 7-day Concussion Disabled List on May 6 and was activated on May 13...placed on the 15-day DL on July 2 with a right wrist fracture after getting hit by a pitch from RHP Edinson Volquez on July 1 vs. KC...activated from the DL on Sept. 4...on April 12 at TEX, robbed the Rangers Leonys Martin of a walk-off grand slam in the 10th inning, which helped Houston to a 14-inning win...recorded three steals and three walks on April 27 at SD, setting career highs in steals while tying his career high for walks for a single game...was the fifth time in club history that a player recorded three walks and three steals in a single game, and the first since Michael Bourn did so on April 25, 2010 vs. PIT...on April 28 at SD, tied a career high with five RBI (also May 24, 2014 at SEA)...posted a career-long 14-game hitting streak from June 7-21 in which he hit.458 (27x59) with four doubles, four homers, seven RBI and a .492 on-base percentage...was the longest hitting streak by an Astro since Jose Altuve hit in 14 straight from Aug. 23-Sept. 7, 2014...went 5x5 with five singles on June 10 at CWS...marked a career-high for hits in a game, and the 12th time in club history that a batter recorded at least five singles in a single game...prior to Springer, the last was Craig Biggio on June 28, 2007 vs. COL when Biggio reached the 3,000-hit plateau...recorded his first multi-homer game of the year on June 15 vs. COL...was his first multi-HR game since May 24, 2014 at SEA...hit his first-career leadoff homer on June 19 at SEA, which was also the Astros first leadoff homer of the season...prior to hitting the DL on July 2, ranked fourth among AL outfielders in OPS (.822), fifth in OBP (.365) and homers (13) and sixth in extra-base hits (27)...had a career-long 25-game on-base streak from June 27-Sept. 26...was the second-longest streak by an Astro this season, behind Jose Altuve's 29-game run from Aug. 1-Sept. 1...was also the second-longest active on-base streak in the Majors at the time...in his first seven games back from the DL from Sept. 4-12, hit .179 (5x28) with no homers and no RBI...in his next 20 games to close out the regular season, hit .345 (29x84) with four doubles, two triples, three homers, 12 RBI, two steals and a .952 OPS (.404 OBP/.548 SLG)...ranked seventh in the AL in batting average and OBP in that 20-game span to end the year...played in five games at Double A on rehab assignments, batting .278 (5x18) with one double, two walks and one stolen base...played in one game on May 12 while rehabbing his concussion...played in four games from Aug. 29-Sept. 3 while rehabbing his fractured right wrist...started every postseason game for Houston in right field...joined Chris Burke (5g), Colby Rasmus (5g), Ken Caminiti (4g) and Glenn Davis (4g) as the only players to start their postseason careers with Houston with a four-game hitting streak...went 5x23 (.217) with two doubles, a homer and three RBI in his six postseason games.
2014
Made his Major League debut after being selected to the Astros from Triple A Oklahoma City on April 15...made 78 starts (70 in RF, 7 in CF and 1 as DH)...entered the season as one of the top prospects in the game...rated as a top-25 overall prospect by Baseball America (No. 18), ESPN.com (No. 19), Baseball Prospectus (No. 20) and MLB.com (No. 21)...was named AL Rookie of the Month for May...became just the fifth Astros player ever to win a Rookie of the Month Award, joining Hunter Pence, Kirk Saarloos, Roy Oswalt and Collin McHugh, who also won the award this season...in May hit .294 (30x102) with four doubles, one triple, 10 homers, 25 RBI and a 1.032 OPS (.385 OBP/.647 SLG)...led all ML rookies in homers, RBI and OPS during the month, while ranking fifth in batting average and second in hits...set franchise rookie records for home runs (19) and RBI (50) prior to the All-Star Break...ranked in the top 10 among ML rookies with a minimum of 290 at-bats in home runs (2nd), RBI (3rd), slugging (3rd), walks (5th) and OBP (4th)...in his 59 games since hitting his first career homer on May 8, was ranked second in the Majors in home runs (20) through July 19, trailing only Edwin Encarnacion (22)...finished just one homer shy of Lance Berkman's Astros rookie record for homers in a single season (21 in 2000)... hit 15 of his 20 home runs this season on the road, while posting a .257 (38x148) average with 31 RBI away from Minute Maid Park...began the season with Triple A Oklahoma City after being reassigned to minor league camp in Spring Training on March 20...selected to the Major League roster on April 16...played in 78 games with the Astros before being placed on the 15-day Disabled List because of a left quad strain...remained on the DL, missing 64 games, through the end of the season...played in three games with Class A Quad Cities on rehab assignment from Aug. 4-6...recorded a hit, a walk and a run scored in his Major League debut on April 16 vs. KC...became just the sixth Astro to put up a line like that in a Major League debut, and the first since James Mouton (April 4, 1994)...collected a hit in each of his first five games (April 16-20) to start his career...the last Astros player to record hits in each of his first five MLB games was Jose Altuve, who hit in seven straight games to start his career in 2011...recorded three walks on May 13 vs. TEX...the last Astros rookie with three walks in a game was Luke Scott on Aug. 4, 2006, at ARI...went 2x5 with two home runs and five RBI in what was his 33rd career game on May 24 at SEA...marked single game career-highs in both home runs and RBI...his five runs tied a franchise record, last acheived by Cody Ransom on Sept. 20, 2007...marked the first multi-homer game by an Astros rookie since Hunter Pence hit two on Aug. 31, 2007, at CHC...the last Astro to record a multi-homer game within his first 33 games was Lance Berkman in 1999 (game 10)...went 4x4 with five runs scored, three RBI, two doubles, a home run and a walk on May 26 at KC, becoming the first player in franchise history to reach all of those marks in a single game...became the first rookie in franchise history to homer in four straight games (five total homers May 21-26)...hit seven homers over a seven-game span from May 21-29, joining Rudy York (with Detroit from Aug. 22-27, 1937) as the only rookies in MLB history ever to hit seven homers over a seven-game stretch (Elias)...hit a two-run homer in the 1st inning on June 30 vs. SEA, a 445-foot shot to left field...tied for the fifth longest ever hit by an Astros player at Minute Maid Park and the longest hit to left field...on June 24 vs. ATL, hit a 441-foot home run, which was tied for the eighth longest homer ever hit by an Astros player at MMP...played in 13 games at Triple A this season, hitting .353 (18x51) with four doubles, a triple, three homers, nine RBI, four stolen bases and a 1.106 OPS (.459 OBP/.647 SLG)...posted multi-hit games in five of his last eight games... hit .250 (1x4) with a double and three walks in three games on an injury rehab assignment with Class A Quad Cities...homered in each of his last two contests with OKC, including a grand slam on April 15 in a RedHawks 11-9 win at Colorado Springs.
2013
Had one of the greatest seasons in minor league history after becoming the first minor leaguer to hit 30+ homers while recording 30+ steals since Oakland's Grant Desme in 2009...became the first Astros minor leaguer ever to reach the 30/30 plateau...named Minor League Baseball's 2013 Offensive Player of the Year and the Astros Minor League Player of the Year after hitting .303 (149x492) with 27 doubles, four triples, 37 homers, 108 RBI, 45 stolen bases and a 1.010 OPS (.411 OBP/.600 SLG) combined between Triple A Oklahoma City (62g) and Double A Corpus Christi (73g)...was one of just nine position players named to Baseball America's Minor League All-Star Team...named to MLB.com's All-Prospect Team...finished among the top 10 players in all of the minors in homers (T-2nd), total bases (295, 3rd), OPS (3rd), RBI (4th), slugging percentage (5th), runs (T-5th) and extra-base hits (68, T-6th)...received Texas League Player of the Year honors and was a Midseason and Postseason All-Star after hitting .297 with 19 homers and 23 steals in 73 first-half games with the Double A Corpus Christi Hooks...received the award despite getting a promotion to Triple A at the start of the second half of the season...named the Texas League Player of the Week for the week of May 27-June 3...received the Hooks April Player of the Month Award...at the time of his promotion to Oklahoma City on June 27, was leading the Texas League in runs (56), extra-base hits (39), and slugging (.579) while ranking tied for first in homers...after arriving at Triple A, led the Pacific Coast League in runs (49), extra-base hits (29), total bases (136), homers (18), RBI (53), slugging percentage (.626) and OPS (1.050)...received PCL Player of the Week honors for the week of July 8-15...named Oklahoma City's Player of the Month for July.
2012
Entered the season as the Astros No. 3
prospect and called the organization's best
athlete and the best defensive outfielder by
Baseball America...was also named to have the
organization's best outfield arm...was a non-roster
invite to the Astros Major League Spring Training
and appeared in nine games, going 3x9 with a
double and two runs scored...assigned to Class
A Advanced Lancaster at the onset of the season,
where he earned midseason and postseason
California League All-Star honors...ranked tied for
second in the league in runs scored, third in OPS
(.955) and triples, fifth in on-base and slugging
percentage, sixth in batting average, tied for eighth in stolen bases and 10th in home runs...earned
2011
Played in eight games for Short-Season Class A Tri-City after signing with the club on Aug. 15...started in center field in all eight contests...went 2x3 with three runs scored, a double and a home run in his second career game on Aug. 29 vs. Lowell...posted a .303 on-base percentage...reported to the club's instructional league in Kissimee, FL, following the season.
