Toronto

Blue Jays

Jiménez’s chances of making the Jays seemed a lot better during that brief window after Anthony Santander went down and before Jesús Sánchez was acquired. He’s out of options and the closest thing the Jays would have to a utility infielder on the bench, but they can probably do without him, since Davis Schneider can play second, Addison Barger can play third and Ernie Clement can slide all around the infield. If the Jays put him Jiménez waivers, one imagines someone will take a shot. He’s just 24, and he has a .404 OBP in 94 career games in Triple-A. As a major leaguer, he’s come in at .207/.303/.332 in 242 plate appearances to date.

The Blue Jays are not concerned about any injury, but Schneider mentioned that the team is aware that Yesavage is coming off perhaps the shortest offseason possible after the Blue Jays’ World Series run. The 22-year-old is “on a little bit of a different ramp up” and will “probably throw another live [bullpen] even before games.” However, Schneider also mentioned that the team is going to monitor Yesavage’s workload during the season as well. “There are probably going to be some times where you have to hone him in a little bit, and if you can maneuver the rotation a little bit, yeah.” After Yesavagae threw 139 2/3 innings last season, it’s probably smart to assume he finishes 2026 around the 150-160 mark.

The left-hander had an MRI that came back clean, but the Blue Jays will “back off” his throwing for a week. Despite the clear MRI, the soreness is obviously concerning given Tiedemann’s long history with injuries. We hope the 23-year-old gets back onto the mound soon, but his career arc is shaping up to be one of the major “what ifs” in recen years.

Berríos’s velocity was down about one mph from 2025, but he said after the game that he feels 100 percent after last year’s arm woes and he’s actually still hoping to be cleared to pitch for Puerto Rico in the WBC. Berríos’s rotation status with the Jays was in doubt for much of the winter, but he should have a spot initially with Shane Bieber set to go on the IL.

Okamoto’s homer off the batting eye in center left his bat at 103.4 mph and was projected at 431 feet. He struck out in his other at-bat, leaving him 1-for-4 in two appearances this spring. He hit fifth today after batting sixth in his first game Saturday.

The Jays knew they could get away with taking Rodríguez off the 40-man over the winter, but that doesn’t mean they were ruling him out as a contributor. Today, though, he didn’t look like someone who was ready to compete for a spot. He averaged 92.6 mph with his fastball, which is down three mph from last year, and throwing out the six balls in play against him, only five of his remaining 20 pitches were strikes. He was unlucky to give up five hits on the quality of contact against him — just one of the six balls in play was hard hit — but he didn’t resemble a major leaguer.

He actually hit the double 40 feet farther than the homer. (398 feet to 357.) Jiménez is slated to see some time at first base this spring with Vladimir Guerrero Jr. off playing in the WBC. He doesn’t seem like a fit for Toronto’s roster, but if he performs well, some lesser contender might want to give him a look.

Varsho was a big help in fantasy leagues in the final two months of last season, hitting .256 with 12 homers and 35 RBI in 47 games after returning from a hamstring strain. If he could keep that up, he might get a chance to hit third or fourth against righties, giving his value another boost. Alas, he was all the way down at seventh in the lineup today behind Addison Barger in the fifth spot and Kazuma Okamoto hitting sixth.

He averaged 95.0 mph with his fastball today, which is a nice bump from last year’s 93.0 average in Triple-A. Macko keeps missing time each year, slowing his development, and he wound up finishing last year in the pen in Triple-A. He doesn’t seem hopeless as a starter just yet, but this is his last option year and it’s not going to be easy for him to break into the Toronto rotation; a full-time move to the pen might come at some point.

Yepez qualifies as an interesting zero-risk depth addition for the Blue Jays to stash at Triple-A Buffalo as emergency depth. The 28-year-old former prospect struggled last year in the minors after failing to make Washington’s season-opening roster. He’s unlikely to get a look with the Blue Jays unless he starts tearing the cover off the ball for an extended stretch. He can be safely ignored in all fantasy formats.