Blue Jays' Leo Jimenez still on the mend after injury and prolonged illness
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Toronto Blue Jays infielder Leo Jimenez spent most of the spring and part of the summer recovering from a viral infection and a nagging hamstring injury. So hitting his first homerun against the Sacramento Athletics in almost a year felt good.
It was only a solo homer in the second inning of Saturday's 4-3 loss to the Athletics, but it was quite the cathartic moment for a young player going through an admittedly difficult 2025.
After battling illness and injury, Jiménez, who entered Saturday 1-for-12 at the plate since being called back up to the Blue Jays on July 1, launched his first homer in the Minors or Majors since Sept. 3, 2024.
«It was a rough start, but at the end of the day, I was excited to be back,» he said. «Now that I'm here, just trying to take advantage of it and just do as much as I can to help the team win games.»
Filling in at second for an elite defender in the injured Andrés Giménez, the newly recalled Jiménez takes pride in his ability with the glove.
"I think my defense is my No. 1 priority when it comes to being up here,» Jiménez said. «Of course, being able to take good at-bats and put the team in a good spot.»
Jiménez, Toronto's No. 5 prospect at the time of his July 4, 2024, debut handled himself capably with the bat in his 63-game rookie season, hitting .229 with four home runs and a .686 OPS.
But he didn't make the Blue Jays out of Spring Training in 2025, finding himself optioned to Triple-A Buffalo on March 21.
Then things REALLY went haywire.
The morning after being optioned, Jiménez woke up sick with what he believed to be the flu.
Jiménez had to be taken to the emergency room, where he was diagnosed with mononucleosis.
«I had no clue what it was, so they explained what that was, and I was like, 'Damn,'» he said.
Jiménez sat at home for weeks, laid low by the viral infection and feeling fatigued. When he was finally able to resume baseball activities, his right hamstring began balking.
Activated from Buffalo's seven-day injured list on May 27, he was back on the IL a week later, missing 11 more days. In 22 Minor League games this season, he batted .274 with a .728 OPS and no home runs.
Then he got the call. On July 1, with the surging Blue Jays in the middle of a pivotal four-game series against the Yankees, a set Toronto went on to sweep Jiménez was recalled to the Major Leagues.
With the Blue Jays winning games, his confidence was at an all-time high, even higher than when he made his MLB debut.
"It feels good being able to actually get a little bit of a taste of the big leagues last year and now being able to get called up again and actually being on the team while we're doing good,» Jiménez said.
If Saturday's performance is any indication, Jiménez could be the latest unheralded hitter to give the Blue Jays some important production. On Friday, Schneider praised players such as Nathan Lukes,
Addison Barger, Tyler Heineman and Myles Straw for what he called «pleasant contributions» to a first-place club.
.
«I think you're getting the expected production out of guys you expected it from, and then there's been guys really embracing their role and who they are,» Schneider said.
Source: MLB.com
| POLL | ||
JUILLET 13 | 151 ANSWERS Blue Jays' Leo Jimenez still on the mend after injury and prolonged illness Dou you think Leo Jimenez will get sent back down to Buffalo upon Andres Gimenez's return? | ||
| Yes | 132 | 87.4 % |
| No | 7 | 4.6 % |
| Too early to tell | 12 | 7.9 % |
| List of polls | ||
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