Why Blue Jays’ 13-16 Start Doesn’t Tell the Full Story
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When looking at the MLB standings, it may seem surprising to see last year's reserve world champs sitting three games below .500 at 13-16. However, that record is far from the real tale as to what the Toronto Blue Jays' season has been.
Remember, baseball is the longest season in professional sports, so at 29-games in, not even 18% of the games have been played. Another point to remember is where the 2025 Blue Jays sat at this point in the year, 13-16.
In fact, Toronto took a long time to turn things around in 2025 as the team still sat a pair of games under .500 a month later from where the season is right now. This is a marathon, not a sprint, and it isn't bold to say the 2026 Blue Jays will be right in the same spot when October rolls around.
If one word were to accurately describe the '26 Jays, it would easily be injuries. Injuries, injuries, and more injuries have dismantled this roster, and while that might seem like a cop-out, it is truly unfathomable how many players this team has been without.
Who the Blue Jays Have Been Missing and for How Long
It hasn't been one area of the roster that has been affected by a plethora of injuries, as the starting rotation is bleeding, while the hitting lineup is barely limping along as the ballclub tries to keep its head above water
The following players were still on the Jays' injured list as of the morning of April 29. Trey Yesavage was activated on 4/28 and made his first start of the year, while George Springer was activated on 4/29 after being off the roster since 4/12.
*Note* if a player was put on IL on 3/25, that means the team has been without said player for the entire season.
- Catcher Alejandro Kirk: IL date 4/4- thumb fracture (underwent surgery on 4/7)
- Starting Pitcher Max Scherzer: IL date 4/27- forearm tendinitis and ankle inflammation
- Outfielder Addison Barger: IL date 4/7- sprained ankle
- Outfielder Nathan Lukes: IL date 4/25- strained hamstring
- Relief Pitcher Yimi García: IL date 3/25- rehabbing from TJ surgery from '25
- Starting Pitcher José Berríos: IL date 3/25- elbow stress fracture
- Starting Pitcher Shane Bieber: IL date 3/25- elbow inflammation
- Long Reliever Lazaro Estrada: IL date 4/5- shoulder impingement
- Starting Pitcher Cody Ponce: IL date 3/31- ACL (likely done for season)
- Outfielder Anthony Santander: IL date- 3/25- labral surgery (could return by end of '26)
DH George Springer is back. He'll be activated off the IL today 🚨
— BET99 Ontario (@BET99ON) April 29, 2026
Springer is not in the lineup today but is ACTIVE 🚀
pic.twitter.com/mEucWdIFcu
It has been less than an ideal start for the Jays, but make no mistake, when this team gets healthy, they are one of the best in baseball. The return of both Yesavage and Springer is a monumental step in the right direction as Toronto fights to get back to the Fall Classic.
The '25 Blue Jays showed everyone in the clubhouse that a rough first 29-games does not define the entire year, and the whole team knows what they are capable of: Greatness.
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Maddy Dickens resides in Loveland, Colorado. She grew up with two older brothers, where their lives revolved around sports. She earned a master's degree in business management from Tarleton State University while simultaneously playing basketball and competing in rodeo at the collegiate level. She successfully parlayed a reserve national championship into a professional rodeo career and now stays involved in upper-level athletics by writing for On SI on several different MLB teams' pages, along with some NCAA sites.