Outfielder Jesús Sánchez returned to game action on Thursday, beginning a rehab assignment in the Florida Complex League while recovering from a right ankle sprain.

The 28-year-old, placed on the 15-day injured list on June 27, batted second and served as the designated hitter for the FCL Blue Jays, going 1-for-3 with a single before departing. He had a pop-out and flyout in his other two plate appearances.

It marked Sánchez’s first contest since injuring his ankle against the Texas Rangers on June 26, leaving after crashing into the left-field wall and ending up on the IL one day later. The current plan is to move the left-handed-hitting outfielder’s rehab to Single-A Dunedin ahead of Friday’s contest versus the Bradenton Marauders — the Pittsburgh Pirates’ affiliate — before bumping him up to Triple-A Buffalo next week, manager John Schneider told reporters in Toronto on Thursday.

If everything runs smoothly, there’s a chance that Sánchez could return for next weekend’s homestand against the St. Louis Cardinals — the club’s final three games before the Aug. 3 trade deadline.

After arriving via trade from the Houston Astros back in the spring, Sánchez has struggled to find his stride at the plate since joining the Blue Jays, only hitting seven home runs and 29 RBIs with a .274/.316/.437 across 73 games. He’s been more of a contact-oriented hitter than a potent power threat that he was during his six seasons with the Miami Marlins.

Paired with Sánchez’s below-average defence in the corners, consisting of minus-six defensive runs saved and outs above average and a minus-seven fielding run value through 458.2 innings, that’s made him a rather disappointing acquisition thus far — worth just 0.1 fWAR.

Also rehabbing down in Dunedin is veteran reliever Yimi García, who remains on the 60-day IL due to complications with his elbow, biceps and neck. But the 35-year-old has resumed a throwing progression, which included a live BP session on Tuesday, where his fastball ranged between 95-96 m.p.h., according to Schneider.

Next up will either be another live BP or resuming a rehab assignment that’s been on pause since June 18.

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