When the Toronto Blue Jays hired David Popkins as their new hitting coach last month, they were betting on the 35-year-old’s ability to turn the ship around for an offence that’s steadily worsened over the previous two seasons — and he’s about to face one of his biggest tests.

On Tuesday, the franchise completed its most notable transaction of the off-season to date, finalizing a four-player deal that brings second baseman Andrés Giménez and right-hander Nick Sandlin from the Cleveland Guardians in exchange for first baseman Spencer Horwitz — who was shipped to the Pittsburgh Pirates for three pitchers in a separate trade — and outfield prospect Nick Mitchell.

Acquiring Giménez, the centrepiece of this trade, significantly improves the Blue Jays’ team defence, which was already a major strength entering this winter, as the 26-year-old is a glove-first infielder and a three-time Gold Glove winner. But, general manager Ross Atkins believes his bat has plenty of potential upside in it, too.

The left-handed-hitting second baseman enjoyed a breakout performance in 2022 — both offensively and defensively. He slashed .297/.371/.466 while blasting 17 home runs and driving in 69, accounting for a 141 wRC+ (100 league average) and 6.1 fWAR over 146 games — all career-highs except for his games played. The last two seasons, however, have trended in the wrong direction.

Giménez still clubbed 15 home runs during the ’23 campaign but dropped to a below-average hitter through his 96 wRC+. His offensive production fell even further last season, as he finished with career lows across the board, including his 83 wRC+.

Still, the super-athletic middle infielder remained an impact performer because of his elite defence, nearly serving as a three-win player during his final season with the Guardians. And he came just a few decimal points shy from being a four-win player the year prior, even as a slightly below-average hitter.

To justify the five years and almost $100 million left on his contract, the Blue Jays probably need more than elite-level fielding from Giménez. At a minimum, he needs to be a league-average hitter, a challenge that now falls to Popkins and the club’s hitting department.

Giménez, an All-Star in 2022, has always been a contact-over-power hitter. Thus, he doesn’t generate much hard contact. The lefty’s quality-of-contact metrics might be where he could make the biggest improvements, though, as Atkins highlighted.

In 2022, the 5-foot-11 infielder posted a 37.8-per-cent hard-hit rate (36th percentile) and 6.2-per-cent barrel rate (33rd percentile), with both well below league average. Two years later, those percentages plummeted to 28.5 per cent and 2.8 per cent, respectively.

Another element of Giménez’s offensive profile that’s changed is his launch angle. During his career year in ’22, he registered an average launch angle of almost 12 degrees and increased that figure to 13 degrees the following season. A season ago, however, it dropped to a career-low 8.7 degrees.

Those will surely be areas that Popkins, who specializes in swing mechanics, will aim to cover in future hitting sessions with Giménez over the off-season and throughout spring training.

If the Blue Jays can restore Giménez’s offensive production, it’ll likely mean the difference between being a quality contributor and a reliable star player. With shortstop Bo Bichette scheduled to hit free agency this time next year, determining where the franchise’s newest acquisition — who could slide over to short in 2025 — lies will be critical.