David Popkins joined the Toronto Blue Jays coaching staff in the offseason and has significantly improved their offensive performance. The Blue Jays lead MLB with 1,240 hits, hold a .267 batting average and rank third in OPS at .765. The team also has the fewest strikeouts in the league with 917. Popkins has adjusted players' plate approaches to reduce a swing-for-the-fences mentality. The Minnesota Twins, who dismissed Popkins after their playoff collapse, now rank in the bottom third in hits, runs, batting average and on-base percentage and appear out of playoff contention with a month remaining.
Back then, Popkins was fully expecting the Twins to offer him an extension after the great work he has done for the Minnesota organization in recent year, as per Dan Hayes of The Athletic. However, when the Twins surprisingly dismissed him following their collapse to make the playoffs, that was when the Blue Jays were among the teams to jump in to fight for his services.
For an offense that had struggled mightily to produce in recent years, thanks to his fine work, the Blue Jays currently lead the entire league in hitting with 1240 hits as a team, along with a .267 batting average and rank third in OPS at .765.
Just for comparison's sake, the Twins currently rank in the bottom third of the league in hits, runs scored, batting average and on-base percentage. Coincidentally, they appear to be out of playoff contention already with a month to go in the season. So to say that Minnesota is missing the guidance of Popkins is certainly a huge understatement.
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