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Nathan Lukes Blue Jays

The Toronto Blue Jays are close to getting injured outfielder Nathan Lukes back, as he has officially been given a rehab assignment.

Lukes has been out since April 24, when he injured his left hamstring, so he has been on the IL for nearly a month now. Thankfully, he is very close to returning for the Blue Jays, as the team assigned him to a rehab assignment at Class-A Dunedin.

“REHAB ALERT @BlueJays OF Nathan Lukes has been assigned to Class-A Dunedin on MLB Rehab Assignment!” the Dunedin Blue Jays posted on X.

Blue Jays Need Nathan Lukes Back

While Lukes hasn’t had a great year overall, he was starting to heat up before he was placed on the IL. We found out a few weeks into the season that Lukes had been dealing with a nasty bout of vertigo, which slowed his bat down at the start of the year. But once he had a doctor diagnose and treat him for his vertigo, Lukes was really starting to ramp it up. Then, he got injured.

The Blue Jays need Lukes back in the lineup, as he is a solid player who was a terrific contributor to the team when they made their World Series run last year. Although the Jays eventually lost in seven games to the Los Angeles Dodgers, they still had a great run, and Lukes was a huge part of it. Despite his slow start to the season this year, Blue Jays manager John Schneider would surely rather have Lukes on his 26-man roster than without him on it. The hope is that his rehab at Class-A Dunedin will go well and that he can make a return to the team in the next week or so.

Blue Jays Will Have Roster Moves to Make When Nathan Lukes Returns

When Lukes does come back to the Blue Jays’ lineup, the team will have to make a transaction to put him back on the 26-man roster.

The last time the Blue Jays made a roster move, they brought back Addison Barger from the IL and sent down Yohendrick Pinango, due to him having options. Then, Barger hurt his elbow and went back on the IL, and the Blue Jays called Pinango back up. He has been amazing for the team. He is now the Blue Jays’ leadoff hitter, and he recently hit his first career home run. So, the team is unlikely to send him back down when Lukes returns.

Instead, it will likely come down to either Davis Schneider or Lenyn Sosa who gets sent down to make room for Sosa. Schneider has been with the team for a few years now and was also a big part of their World Series run last year, but his bat has been cold to start this season, and he does have options remaining. Sosa, meanwhile, has no options remaining, so the Blue Jays likely won’t want to lose him as he provides valuable infield depth. But his bat hasn’t produced much of anything since he joined the Jays in a trade from the Chicago White Sox, and he might be the easiest guy to cut from the roster.