David Popkins is the new hitting coach for the Toronto Blue Jays. The team fired Guillermo Martinez on September 30th, and he will take his place. Prior to the team’s October 1st split, Popkins was the hitting instructor for the Minnesota Twins for three seasons. Prior to joining the Twins, Popkins played in the minor leagues for three seasons with the St. Louis Cardinals organisation and was a hitting coach in the minor leagues for the Los Angeles Dodgers.
Popkins, 34, ended his playing career in 2017 after spending all of it in the minor leagues. The underperforming Blue Jays, who finished 23rd in MLB in runs this season, have benefited from Popkins’ arrival. In 2024, Toronto’s offence was a huge letdown, save for Vladimir Guerrero Jr. Popkins successfully contributed to the Twins’ offence ranking in encouraging levels throughout his tenure there. In 2024, the Twins ranked in the top five in home runs, on-base percentage, slugging, extra-base hits, and hard-hit rate after leading MLB in home runs in 2023. Popkins should be able to assist the Blue Jays replicate that success.
Shortstop for the Twins Regarding Popkins as his hitting instructor with the Twins, Carlos Correa made a statement. “My life and career were literally saved by this man.” I’ve never been in a room with someone that well-educated and relatable. I owe him my life because he is arguably the best hitting coach I have ever worked with. This would suggest that Popkins is quite good at connecting with hitters. Popkins hit 35 home runs while playing for the Frontier League’s Washington Wild Things and was named an All-Star in 2016.
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