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That slump now seems like a distant memory because Springer’s bat has started to heat up again. Springer is a viable threat at age 35 and, with a bit of luck, he’ll remain one for most of the year.

Springer’s power was on full display Saturday afternoon as he slugged a two-run homer in the top of the eighth inning to secure the Jays’ second come-from-behind victory in as many days. His 10th home run of the year was the decisive blow in a hard-fought 5-4 win over the Minnesota Twins. 

Much was made earlier this season about Springer’s hot start. Through his first 18 games, he arguably was the Jays’ most valuable player with a .385 average and a 1.056 on-base-plus-slugging percentage. With most of the players around him struggling, there were times when it felt like he was the only one in the lineup with a productive bat.

Not even stars like Aaron Judge and Shohei Ohtani stay that hot forever, so it wasn’t surprising when Springer started to struggle, but the extent to which he did raised questions. From April 19-May 20, Springer’s average dipped to .182 with a below-average .679 OPS, which was in line with the .674 he produced during a disappointing 2024 season.

So, which guy were the Jays supposed to expect moving forward? The Springer of early April, the guy who failed to perform last year, or somewhere in the middle? Well, it appears Springer has tried to answer that question over the last couple weeks by tapping into his most productive form.

Since May 27, Springer is batting a respectable .272 with four homers, two doubles and eight RBIs. An OPS that dipped as low as .789 is up to .854, which leads all qualified Jays hitters and is much higher than the Major League Baseball average of .710. The Connecticut native is back to being an effective offensive player and he has a pair of decisive home runs over the last two days to prove it.

Springer was responsible for what turned out to the game-winning run Friday with a solo homer off Minnesota’s Bailey Ober in the top of the sixth. The following day, he turned a 3-2 deficit into a 4-3 lead with a two-run shot off Twins reliever Griffin Jax in the eighth as the surging Jays won for the ninth time in their last 10 games.

Springer isn’t the only one producing for the Jays these days. Saturday’s win over the wild-card rival Twins was about as complete a victory any team could have, with manager John Schneider’s squad getting standout contributions on both sides of the ball.

Springer was helped out on offence by backup catcher Tyler Heineman, who hit his second homer of the season and is now batting an astounding .429 with a 1.066 OPS in a limited sample size of 56 at-bats. There were two more hits from the underrated Nathan Lukes, who has a .270 average. There was also a key insurance run brought home in the ninth by Vladimir Guerrero Jr.

The pitching was equally impressive. Fewer than 24 hours after six pitchers were used to win the series opener, Kevin Gausman stepped up by limiting the Twins to three runs over six quality innings. Chad Green and Braydon Fisher, the only two fresh arms in the bullpen, followed with two scoreless frames before Jeff Hoffman pitched around a solo homer in the ninth to earn his 15th save.

Everything is going É«É«À²’s way these days. The Jays are 19-9 over their last 28 games, which trails only the New York Yankees for the best record in the American League. At the start of that run, they were fourth in the division. They are second now and, more importantly, in possession of the first wild-card spot.

Despite a slow start, the dream is still very much alive as the Jays continue to thrive even without the services of injured players such as Max Scherzer, Anthony Santander, Daulton Varsho, Yimi Garcia and Nick Sandlin, who were once viewed as key to any success this team might have.

At the start of this week, the Jays were entering a pivotal 12-game stretch against fellow contenders in the Philadelphia Phillies, Twins and St. Louis Cardinals. They have passed the test so far by going 4-1. And if they keep playing like that, October baseball might still be in the cards.