5 bold internal moves the Blue Jays could make to jumpstart the offense

Let’s see what Nathan Lukes has got

Sometimes, despite working hard and doing your best to show that you could be a potential difference maker, there’s a chance you could still be overlooked, as has been the case for promising outfielder Nathan Lukes. Ever since joining the Jays’ organization on a minor league contract back in November of 2021, Lukes has practically done everything he could to impress the Jays’ brass.

Not only has he performed exceptionally well in each of the subsequent spring trainings, he has gone on to lead the Jays’ Triple-A affiliate Buffalo Bisons in hitting for both last season and this season as well (among players with minimum 30 games played). Currently, Lukes has been torching minor league pitching by registering a stellar .350 average with a .948 OPS, along with 21 runs scored, 7 doubles, 5 home runs, 24 RBI and 4 stolen bases in just 31 games played. Just to put an exclamation mark on his elite accomplishments to date, he recently put together an eye-popping six-hit performance against Rochester last Wednesday, just missing a triple for the cycle.

On top of that, Lukes has been as steady on defense as one could be, committing just a total of two errors in 330 total chances for a fielding percentage of .994, along with tallying 11 outfield assists in three seasons with Buffalo. So there shouldn’t be a worry in a drop-off in defense when adding his reliable and consistent bat to the lineup. In 2023, Lukes did manage to get into some big league games with the Jays and compiled a .192 average with 5 hits and 2 RBI in 29 games mainly as a reserve. However, the amount of playing time and at-bats that he received in the end was so sporadic that it would be difficult for anyone to maintain any type of momentum or groove at the plate to perform well. As a result, with the current Jays’ outfielder trio all struggling to hit even over .230, it may finally be time to give Lukes another chance, one that he truly deserves.