Blue Jays: Yimi García strikes out one in third rehab outing
Photo credit: © Dan Hamilton-Imagn Images
Jun 11, 2026, 12:15 EDTUpdated: Jun 11, 2026, 12:14 EDT
Toronto Blue Jays’ right-hander Yimi García battled control issues on Thursday night in his first Triple-A outing.
García took the next step in his recovery process, appearing with Triple-A Buffalo in his third rehab outing during the Bisons’ 8-2 loss against the Syracuse Mets at Sahlen Field.
The 35-year-old turned in a pitching line of 0.2 IP, 1 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 2 BB, 1 K, and was forced to throw 21 pitches (eight strikes) before being lifted for newly-signed reliever Justin Topa to close out the frame.
García opened the inning by issuing a five-pitch walk to Matt Rudick which was immediately followed by a soft line drive single to right field off the bat of Ji Hwan Bae on an 89.4 mph changeup below the zone.
With runners on first and second with nobody out, García took a heavy breaking-ball approach against Nick Morabito, tossing two sweepers for balls before getting Morabito to fly out to center fielder Jonatan Clase, keeping the runners at first and second.
The next batter was first baseman Ryan Clifford, who García also attacked with a heavy breaking ball approach with but ended up walking the power-hitting first baseman on five pitches to load up the bases for former Detroit Tiger Andy Ibáñez.
García got himself ahead in the count 0-2 before Ibáñez worked it even by taking a changeup above the strike zone, and a curveball below it. With the count 2-2, García beat Ibáñez with a sinker on the inside corner of the plate, a call which Ibáñez challenged to no avail.
Following the strikeout, Bisons manager Casey Candaele turned to Topa who ended up walking in the lone run charged against García before eventually escaping the jam by inducing a flyout off the bat of Grae Kessinger.
While this may have been the plan, it should be noted that 20 of García’s 21 pitches were of the off-speed variety, with the only other offering being a 92.9 mph sinker in which was his last pitch of the evening.
The return of García, who is working his way back from right elbow surgery from last September, could be a huge boost to a Blue Jays bullpen that feels like it could use one more high-leverage arm if the club hopes to make a run in a crowded American League.
Before going down with an injury last July that ultimately ended García’s season, the right-hander was 1-2 with a 3.86 ERA and 1.19 WHIP across 21 innings pitched. García had struck out 25 batters and was holding teams to a sparkling .171 average through his first 22 appearances.
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