It’s time to talk about Davis Schneider’s offensive struggles

Just about this time last year, Toronto Blue Jays fans were treated with a blistering introduction of the phenom named Davis Schneider. Not only did he began his MLB career with the Jays off and running, he was also setting records in the process as it appeared that a star had been born. 

Heading into the 2024 season, Schneider was looking to build upon his initial success with the club as he secured a permanent spot on the 26-man roster. It sure looked like this year would become a breakout season for him, as he started the year strong. Schneider posted a solid .824 OPS while batting a decent .245, along with 25 runs scored, 13 doubles, 7 home runs and 29 RBI over his first two months. On a team that have had trouble producing runs, he inadvertently became one of the key offensive leaders for the Jays coming out of the gate.

However, things began to head in the wrong direction for him once the month of June rolled around. In his proceeding 50 games that he played in, Schneider amassed an abysmal .182 average, .527 OPS, with just 13 runs scored, 5 doubles, 3 home runs, 8 RBI and 51 strikeouts over just 148 at-bats. No doubt he has looked like a completely different player, at least from an offensive standpoint. 

So what has happened to Schneider? Does he have an underlying injury that no one has talked about? But he sure looks fine from the eye test. So perhaps what has happened was the fact that pitchers have figured him out. By looking at the pitch location heat map, opposing pitchers have adjusted to reduce his effectiveness by primarily pitching him down and away. With Schneider producing the highest exit velocities when the pitches were up or in the strike zone, pitchers have now stayed away from that area to force him to adjust.

However, it appears as though Schneider has yet to adapt and make his own adjustments to counter that strategy. In fact, in his last 30 games, he has only two RBI to show for, along with a .185 batting average and a 42% strikeout rate. For someone that had been clutch for the Jays in the earlier parts of the season, his stats with runners in scoring position has now dropped all the way down to just a .227 average with a .667 OPS.

With the Jays giving ample opportunities to various players as they evaluate who could help the team going forward for 2025, Schneider isn’t doing himself any favours being mired in perhaps the greatest slump of his career. Either he will need to figure things out quickly, or he will soon find out that his playing time will be cut back drastically or altogether. That is because there is a steady line of prospects all waiting for their chance. With Addison Barger, Joey Loperfido, Leo Jiménez and Spencer Horwitz all knocking on the door and currently doing all they can to impress the Jays’ brass, time has become the essence for Schneider now if he wants to maintain a spot on their MLB roster beyond this season.