The Toronto Blue Jays have struggled to get where they are now. The reigning winners of the American League pennant have struggled to start the year. Their stars are not playing well and many of their players are injured. This impacted the club dramatically, causing them to fall to third place in the AL East with an 18–22 record.
Barger’s heralded return
That’s why the return of Addison Barger was such wonderful news. With 21 home runs in the regular season and a .480 batting average in the World Series, he was a key part of last season’s team. It was hoped that his return would prove to be a catalyst to get the Jays back to their winning ways.
Sadly, it was not to be. Barger played in just one game before being placed on the 10-day injured list due to right elbow inflammation. It’s unclear how long he’ll be out, but his absence is notable for Toronto. On Saturday, he had the fastest outfield assist in MLB this season (101.2 mph) to get Jorge Soler out at the plate on a sacrifice fly attempt.
His return can’t come soon enough for the Jays. Despite his disappointing .045 batting average this season, it’s important to note the small sample size (22 at-bats) — it’s not enough to say that Barger can’t repeat his breakout numbers from 2025.
Bulk relief role is not working
On the other hand, swingman Eric Lauer was designated for assignment after a poor start to 2026. He is pitching to a 6.69 ERA in 36 1/3 innings and has an unusually high 1.49 WHIP.
Similar to Barger, Lauer had a breakout 2025 campaign. The left-hander posted a career-low 3.18 ERA in 104 2/3 innings. Despite switching between starting and relief roles he was not quiet about his desire to remain as the starter. With the Blue Jays dealing with several injuries to their starting group, Lauer was mostly granted his wishes, but still had to prove himself. He has not done this well.
While the DFA wasn’t entirely unexpected in that regard, it appears to have been a much-needed change for the Blue Jays as they try to right the ship and take charge in a Central American league. It remains to be seen whether they can do so, but these moves at least mark an attempt to do so.
Who is taking his place?
In the same move, outfielder Yohendrick Pinango was recalled from Triple-A and right-hander Yariel Rodriguez was optioned to Toronto’s roster. Neither have an incredible amount of major-league experience, yet they have impressed so far.
Pinango has played in 10 games for the Jays this year, posting a .423/.444/.462 slash line. He has been regarded as more of a depth guy than a regular contributor in Triple-A. However, it’s possible that he could earn a bigger role with the club if he continues to post these types of numbers. He has put up more practical (though still impressive) statistics in Triple-A, slashing .288/.370/.488 in 22 games this year.
Rodriguez has spent a lot of time with Toronto over the last two years. The righty started 21 games for the club in ’24 and pitched in relief in ’25. His results were mostly solid, although he was better as a back-end starter. His performance has been very similar to Lauer’s, posting a 4.47 ERA in his starts in ’24 and a 3.08 mark in the bullpen in ’25.
He has impressed in the Minors, with a 2.63 ERA in 11 games this season. Rodriguez only started one of those games, so it seems likely he will serve as a big reliever similar to Lauer. But how it is deployed remains to be seen. If both can perform well, it would be a big boost for the Blue Jays.
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