Blue Jays Offensive Woes Can Be Attributed to Concerning Increase in One Statistic

All of the Toronto Blue Jays' issues lie in this one area.

May 7, 2025; Anaheim, California, USA; Toronto Blue Jays designated hitter Anthony Santander (25) hits an RBI single during the sixth inning against the Los Angeles Angels at Angel Stadium. | Kiyoshi Mio-Imagn Images

The Toronto Blue Jays have been one of the most disappointing teams in baseball through the first six weeks of the 2025 MLB regular season.

They made some major additions to their lineup in the offseason, and to this point, neither has panned out as well as the team had hoped they would through 36 games played.

Second baseman Andres Gimenez remains an elite defender, but his production at the plate has fallen off a cliff. He has a .195/.273/.305 slash line with a 65 OPS+, hitting three home runs and five doubles to go along with 10 RBI and nine stolen bases.

There would be a lot more scrutiny for his struggles had his new teammate, Anthony Santander, been performing so poorly after agreeing to a five-year, $92.5 million contract this past winter that could be worth as much as $110 million over six years.

The former Baltimore Orioles slugger has a .188/.271/.333 slash line with an OPS+ of 72, hitting five home runs and five doubles with 14 RBI.

That duo is far from the only two players struggling on the team, but they were brought in to elevate the offense and have not gotten the job done.

Gimenez and Santander are the face of the team’s struggles when it comes to doing damage on pitches down the heart of the plate, with slugging percentages under .400.

It's Not Just Two Blue Jays Players, Right?

But, there is a team-wide issue that has arisen, leading to struggles.

The Blue Jays are chasing more pitches outside of the zone this year, with a 4.0% increase, as shared by Eno Sarris of The Athletic (subscription required).

That has had a major impact on the team’s over OPS, which is -0.041 worse in 2025 than it was in 2024. A 41-point drop is massive, as their approach at the plate needs to be adjusted.

“But on the team level, not chasing is a marker of success, probably because the slugging percentage on pitches outside the zone is more than 250 points lower than on pitches inside the zone,” Sarris wrote.

In addition to their struggles hitting pitches right down the middle of the plate, it is fair to wonder how much of these issues are coaching-related.

There is certainly some pressing being done by players who are looking to get on track after a slow start, but the entire team’s approach at the plate is concerning when taking into consideration the power outage that has occurred.

Entering play on May 8, George Springer (.925 OPS) and Vladimir Guerrero Jr. (.792 OPS) are the only qualified starters who have an OPS of at least .735 on the team.

Stellar pitching performances are going to waste because Toronto cannot figure things out at the plate.