The Toronto Blue Jays have managed Daulton Varsho’s left wrist soreness as a day-to-day injury. But after he missed a third straight game, the club may soon have to decide whether an injured-list stint is a better option for their center fielder.
The earliest they can backdate the injury is June 6, when the center fielder was first out of the lineup. That essentially puts a 24-hour clock on the Blue Jays, and if they should place Varsho on the 10-day injured list. The reason for that is teams can only backdate an IL stint for a maximum of three days.
Varsho left the Blue Jays’ 13-3 loss to the Orioles on June 5 with left wrist discomfort. He has not appeared in another game since.
The Blue Jays have been without Varsho’s solid bat and terrific center field defense. In 2026, he’s batting .256 with eight home runs and a .738 OPS. FanGraphs estimates his offense to be 6% better than the league-average hitter with a 106 wRC+.
Blue Jays Manager Gives Latest Daulton Varsho Health Update
GettyDaulton Varsho has been out of the Blue Jays’ lineup for three straight games with a sore left wrist.
Blue Jays manager John Schneider informed SportsNet Ca’s Shi Davidi that Varsho hit “with some pretty good intensity” off the Trajekt machine. While Schneider says his center fielder is “trending in the right direction,” the club needs to consider whether rostering him through this injury is the best move.
Toronto is in the thick of the American League Wild Card Race. Entering play on June 8, they are half a game behind the Texas Rangers for the final spot. They start a three-game series against the surging Philadelphia Phillies in what will be a postseason-like matchup. They may no longer be able to afford to play with a man down if Varsho needs more than a couple of days.
While Schneider has alluded to Varsho’s wrist issues being recurring, it has yet to sideline the center fielder. None of his stints on the injured list have been related to that issue, although this could be the first time.
Placing Varsho on the injured list makes a lot of sense for the Blue Jays. That allows them to field 13 healthy position players while he continues to hit and work out on the side. It should be a minimal stint, if everything goes well, meaning he’d be back as early as June 16.
The Blue Jays have three left-handed outfield bats in Jesus Sanchez, Yohendrick Pinango, and Nathan Lukes. They’ve been playing Myles Straw in center field during Varsho’s absence, but that’s not a long-term proposition. But given the situation, that might not be a problem.
Could the Blue Jays Call Up an Outfielder?
The Blue Jays don’t have much out in Triple-A to consider. Jonatan Clase is the only remaining outfielder on the 40-man roster, but is hitting .172 with Buffalo. RJ Shreck is another possibility, as Toronto’s No. 8 prospect has a .784 OPS.
The problem with promoting Shreck is that he’ll require a 40-man move. One possibility is transferring Addison Barger (right elbow inflammation) to the 60-day injured list. Doing so would delay his return to July 9 at the earliest, and it’s unclear if he needs the full 60 days. Instead, they’ll have to designate a player for assignment.
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