Daulton Varsho gave John Schneider a better Blue Jays update Saturday, with the center fielder now day to day.
Schneider said the left wrist had been bothering Varsho for the last couple of days, then flared again during pregame work and once the game started Friday against Baltimore.
That mattered right away because Toronto feared a bigger hand-or-wrist problem when Varsho favored the area on two swings. Negative X-rays shifted the talk from panic to inflammation management.
Schneider also said the issue is familiar for Varsho, something the outfielder has dealt with before. That history gives the Blue Jays some reason to think rest can cool it down fast.
Friday's exit still changed the lineup card. Varsho left before his second trip to the plate, and Yohendrick Piñango was sent up to hit for him in the fourth inning.
Toronto can live with one missed game. It gets a lot tougher if this drags, because the Blue Jays opened Saturday at 30-34 while the Orioles were sitting right next to them at 31-33.
Varsho has mattered at the plate, too. He entered the weekend with a .739 OPS, and Toronto has not had many steady left-handed bats to lean on during this stretch.
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Blue Jays can breathe, but not relax
His value is bigger than one slash line, which is why this update still carries some tension. Varsho is Toronto's everyday center fielder, not a bench piece Schneider can move around lightly.
The medical news sounds good, but it is not a full green light. MLB's injury tracker still lists Varsho's return as TBD while the club waits to see how the wrist responds to rest.
That is the tightrope Schneider is walking now. A player can avoid a fracture and still need a couple of days if the swing path keeps waking the soreness right back up.
Toronto at least has short-term cover. Myles Straw and Nathan Lukes both give the club playable center-field innings, which is enough to patch a weekend but not ideal for much longer.
The larger roster picture makes the timing awkward. Alejandro Kirk is still building up on rehab assignment, and Addison Barger remains in Florida as he works through his own return.
So Schneider got the update he needed, not the all-clear he wanted. Daulton Varsho is day to day, and the Blue Jays now need that familiar wrist issue to back off fast.
Will Daulton Varsho avoid the injured list?
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