Despite going to the World Series last year, the Toronto Blue Jays have not had a good season this year.
They spent big in free agency, but the spending has not shown up in the standings. Still, they enter play on Thursday only 1 1/2 games out of a wild card spot and have a chance to cut that deficit to just half a game with a win. It won't be easy to get into the postseason for them, but they could get some reinforcements for the final stretch.
The big-name Blue Jays fans have their eye on is Trey Yesavage. The 23-year-old star is one of the team's best starting pitchers, but a name many fans may be forgetting about is Anthony Santander. The team signed him to a five-year, $92.5 million deal after his 44-homer season with the Baltimore Orioles in 2024. He struggled in 2025, dealing with injuries as well.
This year, Santander had surgery to repair his left labrum, and according to manager John Schneider, he could actually be back this year.
“He’s hitting off live pitching down in Florida today and this weekend, and then optimistic me says if he can get into some rehab games in AAA next week,” Schneider told Hazel Mae on Thursday.
Santander was not great last season, hitting .175 in 54 games. However, if he's back healthy, he could actually help the Blue Jays. Outside of Jesús Sánchez and Brett Bateman, as of late, the Blue Jays have not gotten enough offense out of their outfielders this season.
The Blue Jays rank 27th in OPS from right fielders this season. It's not going to hurt them if they throw Santander into right field and he's not great. It will be hard for him to be worse than what they've been getting. He has good power and could be a valuable player as the team tries to get into the postseason and make a miraculous run.