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The Toronto Blue Jays knew they needed to figure out how to revive George Springer’s bat after a down season last year.
Springer slashed just .220/.303/.371 a year ago with the Blue Jays, and it was one of the tasks assigned to first-year hitting coach David Popkins.
“There’s a type of hitter who actually does better, like swing decision and accuracy-wise, when they’re actually looking with intent,” Popkins told Mitch Bannon of The Athletic. “There’s another type of hitter that, when they’re doing that, the swing gets long and their decisions get worse. George is the opposite. He does better in a more aggressive mindset. This is maybe the best version of him ever in his career. And he’s doing it at his age, which is pretty phenomenal.”
Springer’s aggressive mindset has paid off as he is slashing .291/.383/.506 through his first 344 at-bats. His teammates have taken note of the transformation.
“It’s truly insane,” Myles Straw told Bannon. “He’s 35. You can tell he feels his body sometimes, as you should at that age, playing on turf. But the way he runs the bases, hitting for power, doing it all. It’s pretty impressive. A lot of guys are shutting down at 35. Not George.”
His turnaround is one of many reasons why the Blue Jays sit first place in the American League East and hold the best record in the AL. He’s been an impact bat in the lineup along with Vladimir Guerrero Jr. all season long. Springer will need to continue his success at the plate as Toronto begins to have an eye on the postseason.
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