'He's a winner': Blue Jays hoping to ride Springer's magical season to World Series

Editor's Note: This feature was originally published leading into the ALDS. George Springer's three-run home run in Game 7 of the ALCS against the Seattle Mariners helped propel the Blue Jays into their first World Series appearance since 1993.

TORONTO - George Springer wasn't going to allow a teammate to feel like they let everyone down.

It was a tough day on the mound for Brendon Little in a crucial late August series against the Milwaukee Brewers. The Toronto Blue Jays reliever had loaded the bases after committing a pair of errors, and he was left to watch helplessly from the dugout as Tommy Nance came in and managed to escape the jam without allowing a run.

Moments after Nance recorded the third out, Springer emerged behind Little to offer him a hug and some words of encouragement. It was one brief moment in a grueling 162-game season, but it stayed with the sophomore reliever.

"It was awesome," Little told theScore about the exchange. "On those days where you come up short, and for him to come up and say, 'Hey, you're gonna have a lot more outs the rest of season and move on from this one,' it was cool."

Clubhouse culture can be eyewash, and it doesn't automatically translate to winning. But small moments and gestures like Springer's toward Little are clearly part of the fabric of what's been a successful season in Toronto.

"It wasn't something that I planned. It just kind of happened," Springer explained. "This game is so hard, and there's not one guy in this locker room that goes up there trying to fail. Whenever it doesn't go your way, you always tend to feel like it's on you.

"I just felt like in my heart right there that I wanted him to know that it doesn't matter. I don't ever want him, or anybody for that matter, to lose confidence in themselves just off of one thing in a game because there's always another day."

The Blue Jays ended up beating the Brewers that day for one of the 94 wins that helped the team capture its first division title since 2015. They all count.

Springer's been in Toronto for five years now, joining the Blue Jays ahead of the 2021 season on a then franchise-record six-year, $150-million contract. Landing a three-time All-Star, World Series champion, and World Series MVP was a massive get for a franchise that, at the time, was never in the running for the biggest free-agent stars.

The early returns were excellent. Even with some injury issues over the first two seasons, Springer was a strong offensive presence. He helped lead the club to playoff appearances in 2022 and 2023, although the team got swept in both series. He showed some signs of decline in 2023, but he bottomed out in 2024, posting a career-worst .674 OPS as Toronto finished last in the division and creating considerable concern that the 35-year-old's best days were behind him.

His 2025 turnaround has been completely unexpected - at least for almost everyone outside the organization. Armed with a new offensive approach and spending more time in the designated hitter role to keep him fresh, Springer's been resurgent, hitting 32 home runs and posting a team-leading .959 OPS. He's one of the biggest reasons the Blue Jays enter the postseason as the American League's No. 1 seed.

"It's just great to see someone that is truly a great human, good father, good husband, and then went through struggle, but found his way back out," Astros pitcher Lance McCullers Jr. told theScore. "He's having a legitimate MVP-caliber season."

McCullers spent five years in Houston with Springer. The pitcher says it's easy to know who's real and who isn't when you play with someone for so long. McCullers deems Springer as real as they come and considers him one of his favorite teammates.

"It doesn't surprise me that he did something like that," McCullers said of Springer looking out for a teammate. "George is an amazing leader, but it's a quiet leadership. It's an example-set-forth type of leadership. You just watch guys and you see the way they show up to the field. You see the way they prepare, and the way they work, and how hard they play.

"You can't fake that type of infectious personality for that long. George is one of those guys where it didn't matter if he was going through rough stretches or not, he's just one of those guys that is very infectious and a stable part of the clubhouse. Teams find root in those type of players."

McCullers' assessment aligns with how Springer describes his own leadership. While Springer's been praised for his work as the clubhouse DJ - both McCullers and Carlos Correa said that was one of the biggest things they missed when Springer signed in Toronto - he said he prefers to let his play and preparation be his calling card.

"My way of (showing leadership) is just by how I play," Springer said. "I'm not very vocal. I think I've learned to be a little bit more vocal in my time here. I just do it the best way I think I know how and that's just to go play. And if I can give every ounce of my strength and every ounce of my body, hopefully somebody else sees it, and wants to do the same thing."

'A very special season'

Carlos Correa always makes sure to check in with Springer before they play each other. Correa was on the field pregame ahead of a late September series between the Astros and Blue Jays to catch up with his friend and former teammate, and he brought a special request from his son.

"When I called home today, my 3-year old doesn't even say good morning. He says, 'Papi, tell George to come back to the Astros,'" Correa recalled. "And I was like, 'I don't think it works like that, buddy, but I'll try.' So then I went out there and I put him on the phone, and he asked him the same thing. My kids already know the history of the Astros and want him back."

Correa's kept close tabs on Springer since he left Houston, and Springer's dominant 2025 season came as no surprise to him. The Astros third baseman - a member of the Minnesota Twins at the time - spoke with Springer on the phone after the Blue Jays hired David Popkins, the former Twins hitting coach, last October.

"Popkins is a huge difference-maker in a team," Correa said. "When Springer called me in the offseason to ask me about Pop, I told him, 'If you guys get him, you're gonna rake,' and that's exactly what he's been doing. Pop knows what he's doing out there."

"I talked to Carlos about Pop at some length and everything he said has been 100% accurate," Springer said. "I trust (Correa's) word. Whenever he speaks, his words hold weight. I was able to kind of let my guard down faster."

Springer and Popkins got to work almost immediately, and Correa's recommendation allowed them to form a bond more quickly. They had numerous conversations and spent a lot of time diving into video dating back to Springer's minor-league days.

Coming off the worst season of his career made Springer receptive to feedback. He wasn't satisfied with his performance and wasn't willing to give into the aging curve. Springer wanted to keep contributing to the team and ensure he was giving the Blue Jays a good return on his contract.

So when Popkins approached Springer about some adjustments, he was all ears.

"I mean, hitting is weird, right? There's no secret sauce to it. Everybody has their own styles, own opinions," Springer said. "I think one of the things for me as a hitter is learning to trust somebody else, because at the end of the day, no one's going to try to do something that's not going to help.

"The older I've gotten, it's been easier to trust somebody else to really dive into and really embrace what they're saying and learn from that."

The changes worked. Not only has Springer bounced back, but he's been the Blue Jays' best offensive player. He finished the season third in OPS behind Aaron Judge and Shohei Ohtani - the likely MVPs in their respective leagues.

Springer's improved in essentially every offensive metric over last season. Boston Red Sox manager Alex Cora, who was with Springer in Houston, sees Springer using the entire field again and being aggressive. Cora also thinks Toronto's kept him fresher by giving him more days at DH.

The year-over-year statistics show that Springer's barreling the ball more, swinging faster, and chasing less. When he makes contact, he's hitting the baseball with much more authority.

Popkins is quick to deflect any praise he receives back to his players.

"I mean, he's in the box swinging," Popkins said. "That's all him."

He continued, "Getting to know George and helping him put that puzzle together is what we're addicted to in our field. It's been a very special season. I can't tell you how proud I am of him to overcome the adversity that he had last year."

'He's a winner'

If the Blue Jays are going to be successful this October, they'll need Springer to live up to his reputation as a clutch playoff performer.

Springer enters the ALDS tied with Albert Pujols, Corey Seager, and Alex Bregman for the sixth-most postseason home runs (19) in MLB history. His next playoff homer will tie him with Hall of Famer Derek Jeter.

"I think when you match preparation with work ethic and talent, those guys tend to just step up more often," McCullers said of Springer's ability to excel in big moments.

"George just has so much talent - one of the most talented guys I've ever seen play baseball - but also he's very smart, and he really does work at this game daily. When those big moments arise, it's not a moment where he would feel intimidated or overwhelmed. It's just another opportunity to show off that skill and that preparation."

That's exactly what the Blue Jays are hoping for. With a number of young players set to make their postseason debuts Saturday, Blue Jays manager John Schneider believes his clubhouse will lean on Springer's experience as not only a champion, but a World Series MVP.

"It's nice to have guys to kind of say, 'This is what it's like.' ... It's good to have that knowledge," Schneider said. "It's nice to have that for everyone else to kind of talk through."

Springer's magical season has already led the Blue Jays to two celebrations: the first for securing a playoff spot and the second for capturing Toronto's first AL East title since 2015. The Jays haven't played in the Fall Classic since defeating the Philadelphia Phillies in 1993.

"He's a winner," Cora said.

The Blue Jays are hoping he's a World Series winner in Toronto.