logo
Blue Jays: Looking at a potential platoon strategy for the lineup in 2026
alt
Photo credit: Jerome Miron-Imagn Images
Ben Wrixon
Feb 18, 2026, 09:00 ESTUpdated: Feb 17, 2026, 20:41 EST
Comments
Offensive versatility played a huge role in the success of the 2025 Toronto Blue Jays. Their flexible roster allowed them to deploy a different lineup seemingly every game, subbing players in and out depending on the handedness of the opposing pitcher. 
Still, for all their mixing and matching, the Blue Jays had an ‘A’ lineup they preferred to use when everyone was healthy.
Here’s how these top lineups could look in the 2026 season with some new faces in the fold—and one familiar one out the door.  
Projected Lineup Against Right-Handed Pitchers
  1. George Springer – DH
  2. Jesús Sánchez – LF
  3. Vladimir Guerrero Jr. – 1B
  4. Addison Barger – RF
  5. Alejandro Kirk – C
  6. Daulton Varsho – CF
  7. Kazuma Okamoto – 3B
  8. Ernie Clement – 2B
  9. Andrés Giménez – SS
The top of this lineup is similar to what the Blue Jays deployed in Game 7 of the World Series against the Los Angeles Dodgers. Springer leads off, Guerrero bats third, where he’s more comfortable, but newcomer Sánchez slots in between them instead of Lukes because of his legitimate home run power and ability to mash right-handed pitching.  
Bo Bichette batted cleanup in the World Series, but he’s replaced by Addison Barger — the team’s most powerful lefty — in this new-look lineup. Kirk then bats fifth behind him to avoid the double-play potential of him and Guerrero hitting back-to-back. Varsho once again slots in behind Kirk, just one spot higher than when we last saw them. 
Okamoto is the X-factor in this lineup. The Blue Jays wouldn’t have paid him $60 million if they thought he was a platoon player who couldn’t handle right-handed pitching. He could wind up higher in the lineup by season’s end if he hits anything as he did in Japan, but for now, he likely sits a bit lower in the order. 
Nathan Lukes is the most notable omission from this lineup. He hit second for much of last year, but likely profiles as the team’s first bat off the bench in 2026 unless Sánchez really struggles. This lineup needs all the power it can get with Bichette gone and Anthony Santander sidelined, and Sanchez provides that. 
Projected Lineup Against Left-Handed Pitchers
  1. George Springer – DH
  2. Davis Schneider – LF
  3. Vladimir Guerrero Jr. – 1B
  4. Kazuma Okamoto – 3B
  5. Addison Barger – RF
  6. Alejandro Kirk – C
  7. Ernie Clement – 2B
  8. Daulton Varsho – CF
  9. Andrés Giménez – SS 
The Blue Jays don’t have any left-handed bats who handle southpaws well, so this lineup is all about stacking right-handed bats at the top for maximum damage. 
Davis Schneider swaps in for Sánchez largely because of his plate discipline; he can work plenty of walks to set the table for Guerrero. Okamoto bats clean-up to protect the big bats, with Barger sliding down a notch to fifth, as he stays in the lineup as the Jays’ go-to right-fielder moving forward, even when a southpaw is on the mound. While the Blue Jays could bat Kirk fifth and Barger sixth, that would create a scenario where three of their final four batters are left-handed. 
Clement is instead bumped up to seventh after posting a .900 OPS against lefties in 2025. Varsho is the biggest faller given his drastic platoon splits, while Giménez stays locked in at the number nine spot as the de facto weakest hitter on the team. 
Lukes and Sánchez will be lurking as quality pinch-hitter options for Davis Schneider if the opposing manager brings in a right-handed reliever. Myles Straw, meanwhile, should remain a factor as a pinch runner and defensive substitution. 

PRESENTED BY OFF THE ROSTER

Introducing Off The Roster—Toronto Sports, Unfiltered! Toronto sports fans, your new favourite conversation has arrived. Hosted by Cabbie Richards, Lindsay Dunn, and Dan Riccio, Off The Roster dives into the city’s legendary plays, brutal trades, OG jerseys, celebrity tweets, and everything in between. Raw, fun, and totally unfiltered, this is Toronto sports like you’ve never heard it before. Tune in live every weekday morning on the Nation Network YouTube channel, or catch episodes wherever you stream podcasts. Proudly brought to you by our founding partner, PROLINE. Off The Roster—the new sound in the 6ix.

Featured

Editorials

Breaking News