Blue Jays reinforcements bring different benefits to the club

Andrés Giménez and Tyler Heineman were reinstated ahead of Tuesday’s contest.
San Diego Padres v Toronto Blue Jays
San Diego Padres v Toronto Blue Jays | Vaughn Ridley/GettyImages

The Toronto Blue Jays received some tough news over the weekend when both Anthony Santander and Daulton Varsho landed on the 10-day injured list; Santander is having shoulder and hip issues, while Varsho injured his hamstring.

But just as the pair of outfielders got put on the shelf, the Blue Jays received some welcomed news as reinforcements were on the way in the form of Andrés Giménez and Tyler Heineman who were reinstated ahead of Tuesday’s contest against the Phillies.

Blue Jays reinforcements bring different benefits to the club

Both Giménez and Heineman had been with Toronto since the beginning of the season, but were out of action for the last few weeks. Giménez suffered a right quad strain and hasn’t been in the lineup since May 7 in a 5-4 loss to the LA Angels. Heineman last played on May 22 in a 7-6 win over San Diego before going on the seven-day IL with a concussion.   

At the time of their injuries, Giménez and Heineman were trending in opposite directions within their contributions to the Blue Jays 2025 season success. In his limited time as the backup catcher, Heineman has produced a 0.9 bWAR in 19 games, while Giménez, in his role as the everyday second baseman has been worth a 1.0 bWAR in 36 games.

Despite the very close calculations, many fans could argue that there is a case to be made that Heineman has been way more valuable to the Blue Jays this year as he has been no slouch in both the offensive and defensive sides of his game. The 33-year-old was slashing .396/.412/.542 with 19 hits in 48 at-bats. Meantime, he accumulated a 4.4 defensive fWAR, with a solid season behind the dish, with only nine errors and throwing out seven of the 12 runners who were attempting to steal.

Giménez, on the other hand, has really only been valuable on the defensive side of the game with a 2.2 defensive fWAR and a -3.9 offensive fWAR. He slashed .195/.273/.305 with three home runs before he landed on the IL. But after an atrocious April in which he had just 12 hits in 91 at-bats, it looked like he was starting to turn a corner in May. While it’s a very small sample size, Giménez hit .368 going 7-19 in five games, with no strikeouts.

The Blue Jays would love to see Giménez and Heineman get back to what they were doing before getting bit by the injury bug. Even if Heineman regresses to league average numbers and Giménez pulls his stats up to league average numbers, they will be welcomed additions to the club.

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