Yimi Garcia update gives Blue Jays a rare piece of good news

Toronto's latest update was simple but important. Garcia will throw another live batting practice session Tuesday in Dunedin at the player development complex.

That matters because this is no longer only about throwing bullpens in the background. Garcia is already back facing hitters, which means the Blue Jays are pushing him through baseball activity that actually starts to map a return.

The next decision is the part worth watching. According to the latest team update, the step after Tuesday could be either another live BP or the start of a rehab assignment.

That tells you Toronto likes the direction of this. Teams do not start talking openly about rehab games unless a pitcher is clearing the checkpoints they wanted to see.

Garcia first faced hitters last Wednesday, when Sportsnet reported he would throw live batting practice for the first time since his elbow cleanup procedure. That was already a major turn in the process.

This update lands harder because the Blue Jays are not talking about some fringe depth arm. Garcia is one of their trusted late-inning relievers when healthy, and Toronto could use that kind of veteran stability back.

There is still caution in the timeline, though. CBS Sports noted last week that if Garcia handled his first live BP well, he could be cleared for a rehab assignment shortly after. Monday's update shows the club still wants at least one more checkpoint before locking that in.

That makes sense. ESPN's injury tracker and CBS Sports both note Garcia is working back from elbow surgery and is now on the 60-day injured list, so Toronto has every reason to be careful with how it builds him up.

Still, this is clearly progress, not a stall. One live session has already been completed, another is on deck, and the Blue Jays are now openly weighing rehab games as the next fork in the road.

For Schneider, that is the kind of injury update that actually changes roster thinking. Once Garcia gets into rehab games, the conversation shifts from recovery to timing.

That is why Tuesday matters. If Yimi Garcia gets through another live BP cleanly, Toronto may finally be one step away from putting a return to the bullpen on the real calendar instead of talking about it in general terms.