Injuries will pop up throughout the season, and the Toronto Blue Jays are no exception to the rule. The club was without Max Scherzer for a large part of the first half of the campaign, and then lost starter Bowden Francis early into the season as well. They’ve also had both catchers deal with concussion issues, and outfielder Daulton Varsho started the year on the IL and went back on for some time after injuring his hamstring to compound issues further.

One of the most impactful names missing from the everyday lineup has been Anthony Santander, the organization’s top signing this past winter. The switch-hitter hasn’t appeared in a big league game since May 29th and has battled this season to stay healthy, battling a shoulder injury from earlier in the month when he ran into the outfield wall when the team was on the road in Los Angeles. Before landing on the IL, Santander was struggling to a .179/.273/.304 slash line with a .577 OPS and six home runs.

Also missing from the lineup is Bo Bichette, who landed on the IL with a knee sprain after colliding with catcher Austin Wells at home plate during the weekend series against the Yankees.

Bichette has been one of the league’s top hitters this campaign, with the shortstop leading the Majors in hits (181) and doubles (44) even after missing under a week on the injured list. He owns a stellar .311/.357/.483 slash line with 18 homers, 94 RBIs, and a .840 OPS across 582 at-bats.

Santander is currently on a rehab assignment, and Bichette’s status is unclear, but assuming their returns are imminent within the next two weeks, the Toronto Blue Jays will have some tough roster decisions to make.

One decision will be in regards to the 40-man roster, which is currently full. The Jays just gave Orelvis Martinez his walking papers to move Alek Manoah from the 60-day IL to the 40-man, and the same will need to be done for Santander as well.

For this move, it seems likely that a pitcher might be the DFA candidate, whether that’s someone in the minors like Justin Bruihl, Lazaro Estrada, Easton Lucas, or Dillon Tate, or potentially someone on the active roster, such as Ryan Borucki. The only position players in the minors and on the 40-man roster are Jonatan Clase and Leo Jimenez, and it seems unlikely either would be given their walking papers.

Following that roster move, Santander will need a spot on the active roster. Whenever Bichette is ready to go, he will also need a spot.

If the front office wants to play the ‘options’ game, then Nathan Lukes, Joey Loperfido, and Davis Schneider are all candidates to be sent back to the minor leagues.

There’s no easy decision in all of this, as Schneider is hitting well when he’s in the lineup and Lukes has been an everyday player in the lineup this year, given the injuries across the board, and owns a 1.3 bWAR on the campaign. Loperfido might be given the axe again to return to the minors, similar to how he was optioned last month, even though the demotion wasn’t warranted given his play.

The Jays can also move on from one of their current roster players in Ty France, Isiah Kiner-Falefa, or Myles Straw, but that would be a DFA instead of being optioned to the minors.

I don’t see Straw getting the boot, considering he fills the ‘defensive player/off the bench’ persona well and should be a valuable asset down the stretch for Toronto. France is a name more towards the top of the list, but he’s hitting well since the trade (.325/.372/.442 with six doubles and one home run), and his bat might be useful off the bench as well. Kiner-Falefa, the Jays’ recent acquisition, has started hot for the Jays in the small sample (4 for 14 with four RBIs) and with his positional versatility, the club may want to keep him around even with Ernie Clement on the roster.

A lot can happen between now and when Santander/Bichette are ready to go, but as it currently stands, I think Loperfido will be optioned back to Triple-A (for Santander) and then the Jays will pivot once Bichette is ready, which is currently a ‘TBD’ on the schedule. That could be closer to the end of the season, and with the Jays needing to consider a postseason roster given their current trajectory (which is condensed back to 26 players), the Jays will likely part with one of the players without options to field the best team. This rings true if Schneider is continuing to hit well and Lukes is being used off the bench alongside Straw in the outfield, as players with options should not be demoted over others if they are truly playing better come October.

There is no easy decision when it comes to moving players on a team that is currently leading the AL East. It’s a position every manager likely wants to be in, given the riches, but some players who are doing well will be on the wrong end of the business side of the game. Santander is coming back soon, and hopefully, Bichette will follow suit shortly, and the Blue Jays will need to be ready to make some tough roster decisions.