You're starting to hear this on the talk radio shows more and more. Talking about how the Jays are proving you can have tons of success with guys who put the ball in play. Guys who don't just swing for the fences and such. Of course they did mention the Jays do have some pop in their bats too, which is why it works. As someone mentioned yesterday, it's similar to the recent Astros teams - and of course people think of the 2015 Royals. In reality, we're somewhere in between those 2 as we don't have the same ISO/pop that Houston had, but we have more than KC did.
What I find ironic is that for the past 2-3 years, almost everyone has complained about Donny Baseball and his use the whole field message/mentality. He was blamed for ruining our offense and the FO took all this flack for targeting contact over power in the draft and in free agency. People suggested power wins in the playoffs (maybe it does?) and that slapping the ball around and putting it in play is trash and outdated and that it was ruining the franchise.
What's interesting is we've been Top 5 in MLB in K% during every year since 2021. We've made about a 3% improvement in K% this year and jumped to #1 of course, but this strategy seems to have been in place for years now. Everyone complained we didn't have enough pop in the lineup, yet our team ISO was higher in 2022 and 2023 than it is this year and it's only 0.01 higher this year than last year. Despite the coaching changes and addition of Popkins - the approach/results seems quite similar to years past. Perhaps the biggest difference is the # of different players contributing/producing?
It is amazing to see how results change opinions so fast. I've heard people within the baseball industry suggesting the Jays are proof that players do still have the ability to cut down their swing and put the ball in play more - avoiding strikeouts. I think in general, there is a lot of worry throughout baseball that K's are getting way too high and it's hurting the game. They want to see more action, which is felt to be better from a fans perspective and better long term. MLB is a copycat league. If (when!) the Jays win the WS this year, it will be interesting to see if other teams change their philosophies.