The Toronto Blue Jays are coming into a pivotal stretch with respect to their season and their deadline plans. Not less than within the quick time period, they’re going to should do with out their most efficient participant. That is as a result of the Blue Jays positioned infielder Isiah Kiner-Falefa on the injured listing on Tuesday with a sprained left knee. In a corresponding transfer, the staff recalled infielder Leo Jimenez from Triple-A Buffalo.
Kiner-Falefa will head to the shelf main the Blue Jays in Wins Above Substitute. He is hit .292/.338/.420 (117 OPS+) whereas posting spectacular defensive metrics. He initially joined the Blue Jays over the winter, signing a two-year pact value $15 million.
The 29-year-old infielder instructed the Toronto Star’s Mike Wilner Tuesday that he hopes to be again by mid- to late August, regardless of initially considering his harm may have been season-ending.
Kiner-Falefa’s prolonged absence makes it all of the much less probably that Toronto is ready to get again into the playoff hunt forward of the July 30 commerce deadline. The Blue Jays are already eight video games again of the closest playoff spot, the third and closing wild-card place, making it a definite chance that they give the impression of being to commerce veterans over the approaching weeks. Amongst these: first baseman Vladimir Guerrero Jr. and shortstop Bo Bichette, each of whom are slated to succeed in free company on the conclusion of the 2025 season.
Jimenez, 23, hit .271/.416/.431 throughout 57 Triple-a video games this season. It is value noting that the Blue Jays probably may have finished with out his presence have been it not for Orelvis Martinez’s 80-game suspension stemming from a failed performance-enhancing drug take a look at. Nonetheless, Jimenez will probably be making his big-league debut and would appear to have an opportunity to ascertain himself as a possible long-term member of the Blue Jays lineup.
The Blue Jays will proceed their four-game collection in opposition to the Houston Astros on Tuesday night time. Toronto enters having misplaced three of its final 4 video games.
