Why Blue Jays' Offensive Uptick Bodes Well for September
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You don't have to be a particularly close follower of the Toronto Blue Jays to know that their now-completed month of August was a successful one. Entering the month staring up at a 4.5-game deficit in the wild card race and with seven teams standing between them and the third wild card spot, the club went 17-11 to bring themselves firmly back into the mix.
It was the Blue Jays' best month since March (when they went 4-1) and highlighted the fight still left in the underperforming squad. It also helped shift the narrative about the club's offensive woes.
Now, Toronto's bats didn't undergo a dramatic turnaround, nor did they return to peak 2025 levels. Heck, Vladimir Guerrero Jr. still remains homerless at Rogers Centre. It did, however, emphasize that the Blue Jays' offensive talent is still there, even if it's been inexplicably cold for the better part of the 2026 campaign.
Blue Jays' Offense Shows Signs of Life in August
While this past month may not have signified a return to dominance for a Toronto offense that ranked fourth in runs scored a year ago, it did represent a return to respectability.
The Blue Jays surprisingly rank 29th in runs scored this season, 28th in home runs, and 27th in OPS. In August, however, they managed to improve to at least the middle of the pack, sitting 16th in runs scored for the month and 17th in OPS. They still have work to do in the home run department (24th in August), but that's a relatively minor gripe amidst an encouraging turnaround.
Within that improvement lie several key hitters who appear poised to emerge from frustrating slumps. Alejandro Kirk was easily Toronto's best hitter, slashing .341/.412/.534 for the month while hitting five home runs, collecting 20 RBI and coming up big in countless key moments.
There was, however, progress that extended beyond the club's popular catcher. George Springer looks to be slowly returning to 2025 form, putting forth a .321/.370/.488 slash line in August as part of a growing trend towards late-season improvement (his .323 average post-All-Star Break is more than 100 points higher than his average before the break). Meanwhile, Brett Bateman has provided a much-needed boost atop the lineup while making the Kevin Gausman trade look better by the day.
Coming off a three-game sweep of the Seattle Mariners, the Blue Jays' bats are only improving as the AL wild card race continues to tighten. Against the Mariners, they racked up 19 runs, with eight different players scoring. They could certainly still use more out of Guerrero Jr. and his .681 OPS, but they are keeping their heads above water as a collective unit rather than being anchored by one or two foundational offensive forces.
And not a moment too soon, either. For all the positive momentum in Toronto right now, the club remains outside of the AL playoff picture, looking in and still carrying a losing record for the year as we enter September. Starting tonight with a critical three-game series against the third wild-card spot-occupying Cleveland Guardians, the Blue Jays could use continued offensive prowess, with 12 of their final 24 games coming against the Guardians, Baltimore Orioles and Texas Rangers, their three primary rivals for postseason entry.
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Ben Fisher is a long-time sportswriter and baseball lover, dating back to 2008, when he was a member of the media relations team for the Toronto Blue Jays. He has covered a wide range of sports for a seemingly endless array of publications, including The Canadian Press, Fansided and The Hockey Writers. When he isn't writing about sports, he can be found coaching his equally baseball-obsessed sons' Little League teams.