Jesus Sanchez's new approach paying early dividends for Toronto Blue Jays
Photo credit: Dan Hamilton-Imagn Images
New Toronto Blue Jays outfielder Jesus Sanchez is off to a career-best start early in the 2026 season.
Jesus Sanchez has kept things straightforward through his first four regular-season appearances with the Toronto Blue Jays: Focus on driving the ball back up the middle.
On Tuesday, Sanchez delivered a 2-for-4 performance at the plate and brought home the game’s opening run, helping Toronto secure a 5-1 victory over the Colorado Rockies.
With that outing, the outfielder boosted his batting average to .462 while posting an impressive 1.255 OPS.
This ball was hit 100mph by Jesus Sanchez. Just ridiculous.
Sanchez new approach, and love for his new team is a recipe for success
"I'm enjoying this moment, I'm having fun, but I want to talk about approach, especially for the year," said Sanchez through translator Hector Lebron. "I came in here with the mentality to stay through the middle, gap to gap, all the time. "That's the approach I'm going to continue to do through the season and hopefully it works out for me and for the team."
The 28-year-old finished last season with a .237 average, 14 home runs, and 48 RBIs across 134 games split between Miami and Houston.
Over six MLB seasons prior to joining Toronto, the left-handed hitter compiled 73 home runs in 580 games.
His most productive campaign came in 2024, when he posted a .252 average along with 123 hits, 18 home runs, and 64 RBIs. His career-best OPS of .808 came earlier, in 2021, during his time with Miami.
After arriving in Toronto, Sanchez worked with hitting coach David Popkins to adjust his offensive approach, specifically by avoiding pulling the ball and instead emphasizing consistent contact through the middle of the field.
"I want to stay back through the middle, left centre, right centre," said Sanchez. "That's what we've been working on since spring training and obviously it's working pretty good for me. "I'm feeling good with that approach, and I'm going to continue to keep working on that."
Although it’s still early in the season, Sanchez’s underlying metrics have been exceptional.
Across 16 plate appearances, he has recorded a .675 expected weighted on-base average, a Statcast metric that evaluates contact quality, along with a .538 expected batting average.
Those figures currently lead all of Major League Baseball, highlighting his strong underlying performance rather than just results.
Tuesday also marked Sanchez’s first strikeout of the season. He has drawn walks in 16.7 per cent of his plate appearances so far, contributing to a .563 on-base percentage.
His middle-of-the-field approach has also produced a 22.2 per cent barrel rate, a key indicator of consistent, high-quality contact and potential power output.
"He's swinging at the good pitches and he's swinging with intent. That's basically it," said Blue Jays manager John Schneider. "I think he's realizing our approach and within that what we're asking him to do, and it's paying off. "He's got a lot of talent and I like what I see."
In a postgame interview with The Athletic's Mitch Bannon, Sanchez said (through Lebron) that he has never been on a team like this, the vibes are unbelievable.
Jesús Sanchez on the #BlueJays, through an interpreter:
“I’ll tell you, the vibes here are unbelievable. I’ve never been on a team like this.”
“I’ll tell you, the vibes here are unbelievable. I’ve never been on a team like this.”
It looks like Sanchez is fitting in like a glove, his bat plays pretty well too.
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