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An overview of the Blue Jays outfield depth with Anthony Santander and Daulton Varsho on the IL
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Photo credit: © Nick Turchiaro-Imagn Images
Matthew Spagnuolo
Jun 4, 2025, 19:00 EDTUpdated: Jun 4, 2025, 18:18 EDT
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Daulton Varsho’s injury during Saturday’s game vs. the Athletics was a huge cause for concern for the Blue Jays when he was helped off the field by trainers while rounding second base. 
Keegan Matheson officially confirmed that Varsho suffered a Grade 1 hamstring strain and will be out for the foreseeable future. While the injury thankfully is not more serious than it looked, it is a huge loss for the Blue Jays centre fielder as he was having a great stretch hitting and in the field. 
With Anthony Santander out as well with hip and shoulder issues, the Blue Jays just lost two of their power mashers in a week, and will look to try and fill those holes in any way they can. 
Fortunately for the team, we have seen a lot of names step up this season, and it’s a good opportunity to look and see what the team has to offer. While George Springer is the team’s starting right fielder and can move to play in centre if needed, let’s look at the other primary outfielders the club has that can play in centre field. 
Myles Straw
 Myles Straw has spent the most amount of time in centre field this year for the Blue Jays with 32 appearances. He was also the player the team originally looked to to play in centre field when Varsho was still recovering from offseason surgery on his rotator cuff, splitting time with Springer.  The former Gold Glove winner would be the easiest solution to play in centre field, as he is someone whom the team can trust that come close to the defence that Varsho has provided. 
So far, Straw has been a solid contributor on both sides of the ball, as many had cast him to the side as collateral after the Blue Jays missed out on Roki Sasaki. Straw owns a .280 average and a .674 OPS with a single home run and 10 RBIs this season in 49 games. Despite the small sample size, this is the likeliest option to see centre field the most. 
Nathan Lukes
Admittedly, the most pleasantly shocking surprise over the last month for Blue Jays fans has been Nathan Lukes.
Once May hit, Lukes just exploded offensively as he went from hitting just .222 with a single home run and five RBIs in 16 games, to hitting three home runs and 14 RBIs in the next 25 games. Lukes also can play in all spots of the outfield, which is something the team is pleased to do given the flexibility they desire for the roster. Even though Lukes has seen centre field the least (14) compared to both corner spots (16 LF, 15 RF), he has proven to be a surprise, the Blue Jays are taking advantage of, especially given the injury bug hitting the team. 
Alan Roden
Roden returned to the roster when Anthony Santander went on the IL earlier this week, and is an interesting name to look at. The rookie’s demotion at the beginning of May did not come as a surprise, as the left-handed bat was only hitting .178 in 27 games. 
However, Ross Atkins spoke highly of him for a reason, as he has surprised a lot of people in the organization as an outfielder to keep an eye on for the future. In triple-A Buffalo, Roden leads the team in batting average as he’s hitting .361 in 18 games in the minors.
The outfielder only has a single game in centre in his 27 games for the Jays, the team will likely use him in the corner spots when Lukes or Straw take reps in centre. 
Jonatan Clase
Jonatan Clase is a dark horse name to pave his path as a future outfielder on this squad. His speed is his biggest asset, and given how quickly he can run on the base paths, it can transition to his fielding. 
Clase still has a high ceiling at 23 and has a lot of work to do before he unlocks his full potential, but so far, the Blue Jays are letting him earn his opportunities in the big leagues. 
In 14 games with the Blue Jays this season, Clase already has five RBIs and has stolen three bases for the team, which is fourth on the roster. In a similar way to Roden, Clase has not gotten a ton of playing time in centre field as he has been used mostly in left field, but he did make eight appearances for the team in centre last season. 
Clase likely will be someone the team will use as a pinch runner or a defensive replacement; however, he could see some increased playing time if manager John Schneider thinks his speed is needed. 
Davis Schneider
Since being sent down on April 17th, many expected Davis Schneider to be back in the majors in no time.
Sure enough, June is here, and Schneider is back with the club. With Andres Gimenez back on the team as well, that means Davis will likely see his playing time predominantly in left field in a platooning role with others. Davis got to see the outfield in 93 appearances last season and was primarily used as an outfielder in triple-A Buffalo, spending 20 games in left field compared to his 10 starts at second base. While Davis is not the best defensively in the corner outfield, his bat is still a key strength, as seen in the past couple of games since being called up.
Schneider has gone 3 for 6 since coming back up and hit his first home run of the season against Philadelphia on Tuesday night. Perhaps he can provide the pop in the bat that the team is going to be missing from Varsho over the foreseeable future, suiting up in left field.
Is Joey Loperfido Ready?
Joey Loperfido is a name Blue Jays fans have been quietly keeping an eye on since he started the season with the Buffalo Bisons.
In 53 games with Buffalo, he sits second on the team in stolen bases (8) and RBIs (28) while also posting a .773 OPS. Given how Loperfido had a tough transition from Houston to Toronto last season following the trade deadline, after a lot of work in the minor leagues and getting primary playing time in centre field, I do believe that Loperfido is very close to breaking back in the majors sooner rather than later (whether he remains in centre field or not).
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