TORONTO -- Addison Barger’s rehab has been set back by a new injury, as a recent MRI revealed a stress reaction in his back, which will shut Barger down for multiple weeks.
Barger had been rehabbing from right elbow inflammation recently and was nearing a rehab assignment, but he travelled to Toronto for what was billed as a routine check-in with the Blue Jays’ staff before joining an affiliate. That’s when Barger started to feel something while swinging, which brings us to Barger’s third injury of the season after a left ankle sprain earlier in the year.
“It’s something new,” manager John Schneider said. “As he was hitting in Florida a lot and then ramped up, he was just having some regular soreness, so that’s part of the reason he came up here. We got the MRI, and we’re going to shut him down for a couple of weeks.”
This is another blow for the Blue Jays, but at this point, they’re used to it. This season has been defined by injuries and shortcomings, neither of which the club wants to see any more of.
Barger’s absence has been crushing, though. Given that the 26-year-old barely produced in his extremely limited playing time, we can essentially consider this a lost season for him up to this point. He was supposed to represent upside for the 2026 Blue Jays, who needed that desperately. Coming into the year, a slight step back in production from George Springer was reasonable to expect, which is where Barger came in.
Add in the unexpected struggles of Vladimir Guerrero Jr.? The Blue Jays’ offense just hasn’t had enough answers for all of these challenges.
“When you look, he’s got 22 at-bats this year,” Schneider said. “He’s a big part of our team in terms of power, versatility, all of that stuff. Losing some pitchers, losing [catcher Alejandro Kirk], [outfielder Nathan Lukes] and George [Springer] for a little bit, just because [Barger] hasn’t played, you kind of forget. He was a big part of what we were hoping to do coming in and a big part of last year.”
In Barger’s absence, the Blue Jays will need to find that secondary offense elsewhere. Yohendrick Piñango will continue to get looks in the corner outfield, where his bat has excited but his glove has been very inconsistent. Thankfully for Toronto, Kazuma Okamoto has emerged at third base as one of the best stories of its season, so when Barger eventually does return, he could be primarily used only in the outfield.
Barger’s elbow injury is mostly behind him now, according to the Blue Jays, so a new rehab timeline begins with his back. We should have a clearer timeline later in July, if Barger is able to begin baseball activities by then.