The Toronto Blue Jays have struggled to find consistency on offence all season as they head into Tuesday’s game seven games under .500.
Things have been particularly dire of late. Toronto has combined to score just three runs over their previous four games, including a streak of 29.2 innings without a run stretching from last Friday to Monday night.
Hitting coach David Popkins spoke to reporters before Tuesday’s game against the San Francisco Giants and said he wants to see Blue Jay hitters to attack opposing pitchers while being without fear in the batter’s box.
“It gets back to being fearless in the box … Right now, it’s similar to a fighter that’s trying to defend eight punches at once. They’re just trying to react, versus throwing a haymaker and seeing what happens,” Popkins said via MLB.com’s Keegan Matheson.
“All it takes is one guy falling over when he swings or connecting and hitting one off the Coca-Cola bottle out there,” Popkins said, referencing the structure in deep left centre field at Oracle Park in San Francisco.
“We need to throw one shot, connect on it, and the guys can kind of breathe a little bit. They’re working their butts off, and it just takes one moment to break through.”
The Jays have dealt with a myriad of injuries and underperformance from key players in 2026 as they aim to follow-up on last season’s run to the World Series. The offensive stats are far from flattering.
Toronto enters play Tuesday tied for second-last in total runs scored (357). They also sit fourth-last in slugging percentage (.381), fourth-last in team OPS (.680) and are tied with the San Diego Padres for last in OPS+ (86), which measures overall team offensive performance relative to league average. The Jays have also struggled in key situations as they sit second-last in team OPS with runners in scoring position (.675).
Star first baseman Vladimir Guerrero Jr. was the driving force in the postseason last fall but is having the worst season of his career by far. He has just four home runs on the season – including none at home – and his .693 OPS is down over .150 points compared to last year’s total of .848, which is also his career average. While Guerrero has dealt with back tightness off and on the last few weeks, it’s clear he hasn’t been at his best for most of the season.
“He’s gotten a little jumpy and he’s a little more open than he typically has been,” Popkins said Tuesday via Matheson.
However, Popkins did praise the 27-year-old’s resolve under adversity.
“I have a profound respect for Vladdy, how he’s handled this and how he’s carried himself,” Popkins said.
All is not lost for the Jays despite the lack of thump from their bats. Their 42-49 record is well below the team’s expectations coming into the season, but they remain just three and a half games out of the final American League wild-card spot.
“When you’re not at your best, you’ve got to lean into your boys, into your teammates,” All-Star second baseman Ernie Clement said after Monday’s loss.
“It’s close. I think it takes something super small just to get out of it. It could be as small as somebody beating out a routine ground ball or making a diving play in the field. Something little like that can jumpstart us and get us out of this. It’s really important that we emphasize that it’s not over.”
