Jesus Sanchez is likely headed back to Toronto soon, with his fifth and possibly final rehab game coming Thursday.
Sanchez has been working back from a right ankle sprain suffered June 26 during a 5-4 loss to the Texas Rangers.
He started in left field for Buffalo for a second straight night, playing three defensive innings and getting two at-bats after logging seven innings the night before.
Facing Lehigh Valley right-hander Chuck King, Sanchez bounced into a double play in his first at-bat, rolling over an 85.5 mph changeup for a 4-6-3 groundout.
He got King again in the third, winning a seven-pitch battle by driving a 3-2 slider for a double at 101.9 mph, his first extra-base hit of the entire rehab stint.
Across stops in the FCL, Single-A and Triple-A, Sanchez has gone 4-for-12 with an RBI, reaching base at a .438 clip during this rehab window.
Since being acquired from Houston in exchange for Joey Loperfido, Sanchez has played 73 games for Toronto this year, hitting .274 with seven home runs and 29 RBIs, though his .316 OBP reflects just 10 walks on the season.
Why his return timing carries real trade implications
Sanchez is playing this season at $6.8 million and heads to arbitration this winter, adding a financial wrinkle to any decision about his future.
Toronto sits at 50-59, last in the American League East, with a genuine surplus of outfielders on the roster even before Sanchez comes off the injured list.
That combination, a healthy return and an outfield logjam, makes him a real trade candidate if a contender believes his bat fits their lineup.
It's a bit like getting a key piece of inventory back in stock right as the store considers whether it even needs to keep carrying it.
Does Sanchez's return actually strengthen Toronto's roster, or does his health simply make him easier to move before the deadline passes?
Toronto's front office now has a healthy, productive outfielder back in the mix, right as decisions about the roster's direction need to be finalized.
Should the Blue Jays trade Jesus Sanchez once he's fully healthy again?
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