Daulton Varsho has been an impact player for the Blue Jays this season

For the first 28 games of this 2025 MLB season, the Toronto Blue Jays had a Daulton Varsho-sized hole in their outfield.

He made his triumphant return to the lineup on April 29th and immediately made his presence known with what might be the catch of the year.

That amazing catch has set the tone for what's looking like a breakout year for the 28-year-old.

Varsho's mashed three home runs through eight games this year, and has helped provide a bit of life to a lineup that's labored through the first month-plus of the season.

Daulton Varsho has been an impact player since returning from the injured list

While Varsho got off to a strong start in the spring with four home runs, he had to wait on the injured list for almost a month at the start of the season while he finished recovering from offseason shoulder surgery.

He mashed his first home run on April 30th (his second game of the year) and he hasn't slowed down since.

The most recent example of his strength at the plate came on Thursday in Toronto's 8-5 victory. Along with hitting a double in the third inning and a single in the fifth inning, he mashed a solo home run in the eighth to give the Blue Jays an all-important insurance run.

It was his third home run in a seven-day span.

While Varsho said that he was ready to hit the ground running while he was on his rehab assigment in Triple-A, his strong start is still impressive. He's slashing .231/.290/.615 this year and has seven RBI and an OPS+ of 151.

His strong start comes at a time when the Blue Jays' offense is struggling. He's already tied for third on the team in home runs despite only playing in eight games, and the Blue Jays entered the weekend tied for the last in MLB with just 27 home runs.

Varsho's hit in the No. 3, 4, 5 and 6 spots in the order since coming back, which shows that his left-handed bat can be a weapon for John Schneider. Not only does his power bat play at the bottom of the order, but the fact he's left-handed means the team can mix and match handedness at the top of the lineup.

Bo Bichette (the normal leadoff hitter) and Vladimir Guerrero Jr. (the No. 2 hitter) are both right-handed hitters while Anthony Santander is a switch-hitter.

Having Varsho in the cleanup spot mean that opposing managers wouldn't be able to get a platoon advantage against the top of the order late in games.

The Blue Jays entered play on Saturday four games behind the Yankees for the lead in the American League East, so their rough first play through the first 40 games hasn't put them in too deep of a hole.

That said, they'll need Varsho (and the rest of the bats) to stay hot for them to have a chance to make up some ground.