What's that old line from the Dark Knight movie?

Ah yes.

"You either die a hero, or you live long enough to see yourself become the villain."

Such just might be the case for Toronto Blue Jays infielder Ernie Clement, who was one of the most likable things about the 2025 Blue Jays that ran to an American League pennant, but has become somewhat of a symbol of the team's historic offensive woes this season.

Entering play on Tuesday, the Blue Jays averaging 4.03 runs per game, the worst for the franchise in more than 40 years. Their .692 OPS is tied for the second-worst in baseball with the Seattle Mariners, the team they beat in last year's American League Championship Series.

And if you listen to local sports talk radio, some are ready to move on from Clement's role as a starter, and some are ready to move on from him in general if need be. The "Blair and Parker" show on Sportsnet 590 has already indicated they don't think Clement should be any more than a utility player, and they've also indicated that they'd move Clement in a trade if it helped the team get better.

A 30-year-old native of Rochester, N.Y., Clement is a six-year veteran of the Cleveland Guardians, Oakland Athletics and Blue Jays. 

He's found a home with Toronto over the last four years, playing 139 games or more in each of the last three. He's hit .272 with the Jays, popping 31 home runs, and he had a generational run in the playoffs in 2025, hitting .411 with six doubles in 18 games.

As "Blair and Parker" indicated, he's a fan favorite, and he was voted into the All-Star Game this season.

Typically the utility player that people think of, Clement was given the everyday second base job in the wake of Bo Bichette leaving in free agency and Andres Gimenez sliding back to shortstop. 

Clement has played in 153 games and has actually has a respectable .264 average, but his on-base percentage is just at .290 and his OPS is only at .660. He has an OPS+ of 81, which suggests he's been a well-below average offensive player. 

While Clement almost never strikes out or swings-and-misses (98th percentile K-rate and 93rd percentile whiff rate), he also chases almost more than any player in baseball (2nd percentile). He's in the first percentile of walk rate.

We always say that making contact and not striking out is a good thing, but Clement is proof that maybe swinging at everything and making great contact is not necessarily the best way to have offensive success.

The Blue Jays are fairly locked into the idea of Alejandro Kirk, Vladimir Guerrero Jr. and Kazuma Okamoto being every day players. Beyond that, guys like Brett Bateman, Addison Barger and Anthony Santander should have roles.

There are spots to upgrade the offense, and Clement's starting second base job could be one of them.

We'll have to wait for the offseason to see, and unfortunately, that's coming faster than anyone wants.