The Toronto Blue Jays’ injury bus is getting a bit lighter this week, with Addison Barger returning from a bilateral ankle sprain that had him sitting on the sidelines since early April. With his return, it meant that the Jays’ coaching staff was going to have to remove one player from the active roster, and who they landed on surprised many.

With Barger being reinstated on Saturday, the Jays decided to option Yohendrick Pinango back to Triple-A Buffalo. Pinango, a 24-year-old outfielder the Jays acquired in the Nate Pearson deal in 2024, was called up to the big league squad on April 25th when Nathan Lukes landed on the IL, and the Venezuelan was impressing during the small sample size.

Through 10 games, the left-handed hitting Pinango posted a .423/.444/.462 slash line with a .906 OPS, collecting one double and four RBIs while going 11 for 26 at the plate with a walk. He also struck out just three times and owned a 90.1 MPH exit velocity at the plate.

On the defensive side of the game, Pinango spent most of his time in left field but had a couple of stints in the opposite corner, posting a clean record and making natural routes to the ball without much issue.

When pressed on the decision to option Pinango, Schneider told the Jays beat staff that it was, “a tough decision, with his performance,” and rightly so. Pinango came up and did exactly what the Jays asked him to do, and was able to provide meaningful at-bats at a time when the Jays were really struggling to find the barrel to the baseball (last night’s decimating of the Angels aside).

As a team, the Blue Jays rank 16th in SLG (.385), 18th in OPS (.701), 21st in home runs (37), and 23rd in OBP (.316), a far cry from their ‘pass the baton and get on base’ mentality the club found last season that made them so successful. Truth be told, the Jays didn’t figure that out until later into the season, much like they are doing now, but the Jays should be finding ways to win games and break that comeback mentality that made them winners last season instead of replicating it.

While Pinango isn’t going to be the lone saviour of this team, the reason for his option back to Triple-A doesn’t support the purpose of trying to win now, especially when he is one of the hottest hands in the lineup for the Jays in recent weeks.

Davis Schneider is struggling mightily at the plate after a solid start to the campaign, collecting just eight hits through 56 at-bats (.143) with a .574 OPS. Lenyn Sosa is sporting a .245/.240/.367 slash line across 16 games since being acquired by the Jays. Jesus Sanchez owns a .246/.287/.407 slash line on the year, as well.

Of the group, Sanchez is likely not going anywhere, but if the roster decision boiled down to between Schneider and Pinango because of the outfield connection, it’s tough to see why Schneider is still with the club at the moment. Especially if the verdict is part of a bigger picture ‘he needs to play every day’ slogan feels like it’s being overused.

If that’s the case, then a fair argument can be made for Schneider to go back down to Buffalo and rework on things away from the spotlight, ala Brendon Little style. Schneider even has the minor league option to work with to make the move happen without roster complications. At a certain point, Pinango doesn’t need to be this babied prospect that the club needs to have playing every day, and just let the guy get some major league reps when the team can support him on the bench or split time with Sanchez/Barger in the corner outfield spots. Sanchez has done well at the plate and supported himself in the outfield just fine, but he’s not running away with the everyday position aspect.

One argument that has popped up with the Pinango demotion is the abundance of left-handed bats on the roster, especially in the outfield.

It’s a fair point, mostly because Sanchez, Barger, Pinango, Daulton Varsho, and Nathan Lukes (once healthy) all bat from the same side. It’s probably what is keeping Sosa around a bit longer as well.

However, the argument loses merit when you consider that keeping Schneider doesn’t help solve the underlying point, especially since:

This leaves left field open for the taking, which the team could employ either Sanchez or Pinango to get the job done. Manager John Schneider can find ways to plug Pinango in the lineup with regularity while also getting Sanchez some meaningful at-bats.

The biggest issue with this recent roster decision is that it doesn’t support having the best players on the diamond. Unless Pinango is an absolute cancer in the clubhouse (which doesn’t seem like the case), then the only argument for keeping Schneider around is the right-handed bat, which has already been proven moot.

This could all be a wash when Lukes returns and Pinango becomes the player on the outside of the roster picture, but until then, the Venezuelan should still be in the big leagues, and roster moves like this are not helping the Blue Jays’ cause in turning things around early in the season.

Off The Roster is Toronto sports. Hosted by Cabbie Richards, Lindsay Dunn, and Dan Riccio, this is the go-to morning conversation for everything happening in the 6ix – Hockey, Baseball, Basketball and everything in between. From breakout performances and questionable trades to throwback jerseys, viral moments, and the stories fans are actually talking about—it’s smart, sharp, and never scripted. Live weekday mornings on the Nation Network YouTube channel and available wherever you stream podcasts, the show delivers real opinions, real chemistry, and real Toronto energy. Missed an episode? Catch up anytime. Off The Roster—The new sound of the 6ix.