TORONTO -- Blue Jays manager Charlie Montoyo has a favorite stretch of baseball from 2019.

His young roster, stripped of most remaining veterans at the Trade Deadline, opened September with seven consecutive losses, before turning it around down the stretch. Led by their young core, the Blue Jays went 12-8 over their final 20 games. It was a small sample size, but that stretch opened with back-to-back series wins over the Red Sox and Yankees.

If you've heard Montoyo speak for any amount of time between then and now, you've heard him mention these games.

That stretch came without Hyun-Jin Ryu, without Nate Pearson and without Vladimir Guerrero Jr. being the all-world hitter he's capable of being. Sure, the Blue Jays might be a year ahead of their expected playoff push while staring down this season's third-toughest schedule (based on 2019 win percentages), but Montoyo likes Toronto's chances. In his eyes, there will be two types of teams this year, and you can guess which one he plans on his being.

"There's going to be the team that works together, follows the guidelines, works as a group and stays healthy, and that's going to help you win more games," Montoyo said. "Then there's going to be the team that's going to complain about everything, lose focus, get sick and not be healthy, and they're not going to do very well. It's going to be a long 60 games."

The emphasis on health is the foundation of all of this and has shown itself in workouts already with more of an individual focus. Montoyo said that 46 players are training in Toronto, while 12 are still training in Dunedin, Fla., though it's not yet clear when that group will join Summer Camp at Rogers Centre.

This 60-game season won't just test rosters and players, but also a manager's individual style. This could be Montoyo's "wheelhouse," as general manager Ross Atkins put it, given his ability to keep the full roster involved, a byproduct of his time in the Minor Leagues and player development.

In 2019, the Blue Jays never used the same lineup configuration more than three times, down from totals of eight, 10 and eight in the previous three seasons. This is partly due to necessity, as the organization went all-in on its youth movement, but partly due to preference, as Montoyo liked to keep every player involved. Over just 60 games, with less need to work in scheduled rest days or keep reserve players fresh, how big a role will that strategy still play?

The day-to-day plan come July 24 is still a work in progress, but at Summer Camp, that emphasis on work outside of group settings is key. The Blue Jays can control this through intrasquad games and breaking their training into "waves" throughout the day.

"This is going to be a Spring Training where you work with guys individually, whatever they need," Montoyo said. "Pitchers, whatever innings they need or if they need to face hitters. Same with the hitters. Playing intrasquad games, they can get five at-bats, six at-bats, whatever they need."

Some hitters took up to six and seven at-bats in live batting practice Tuesday as the Blue Jays work to ramp up quickly and safely.

The Blue Jays will begin intrasquad games Thursday at 7 p.m. ET, as the club won't be travelling to play other teams in exhibitions. The organization has yet to receive word from the Canadian government on whether it will be permitted to play its regular season in Toronto, which is the Blue Jays' preference. If not, they'll relocate back to their spring home of TD Ballpark in Dunedin.