Blue Jays' Addison Barger: Called up, starting Wednesday
Rotowire
The Blue Jays recalled Barger from Triple-A Buffalo on Wednesday. He'll start in left field and bat eighth against the Royals.
Barger will be making his MLB debut Wednesday after he was added to the 26-man active roster following Kevin Kiermaier's (hip) placement on the 10-day injured list. Though Kiermaier's absence creates an opening in the everyday lineup, Barger is more likely to fill a utility role for the Blue Jays rather than serving as a direct replacement for the veteran center fielder. Davis Schneider is a likelier candidate to take on more responsibilities in the outfield than Barger, who was promoted after slashing .314/.435/.586 with three home runs and 21 RBI through 19 games with Buffalo.
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Blue Jays' Addison Barger: Expected to be promoted
Rotowire
Barger is expected to be recalled from Triple-A Buffalo prior to Wednesday's game in Kansas City, Ben Nicholson-Smith of Sportsnet.ca reports.
Kevin Kiermaier exited Tuesday's game with hip flexor discomfort and could be headed to the injured list to open up room on the 26-man active roster for Barger. The 24-year-old has slashed .314/.435/.586 with three home runs and a 15:14 K:BB over 19 games with Buffalo this season. He's played right field and third base for Buffalo this season and would be making his major-league debut when/if he gets into a game.
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Blue Jays' Addison Barger: Sent to Triple-A
Rotowire
The Blue Jays optioned Barger to Triple-A Buffalo on Tuesday.
Barger didn't have a realistic chance of making Toronto's Opening Day roster, but he still put on a show while in big-league camp with a .929 OPS in 19 plate appearances. The 24-year-old saw a lot of action in right field this spring, potentially setting him up for a promotion if George Springer goes down with an injury at some point this season.
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Blue Jays' Addison Barger: Getting work in right field
Rotowire
Barger has played a lot of right field so far in camp, Kaitlyn McGrath of The Athletic reports.
The 24-year-old played four different positions last season in the minors, including 20 games each at third base and shortstop, but the Blue Jays seem to view right field as Barger's best defensive fit. He won't break camp on the big-league roster, but should George Springer go down with an injury and Barger is swinging the bat well at Triple-A Buffalo, it could position him to make his MLB debut over the summer.
Barger is hitting .222 with three doubles, four walks and six strikeouts in six games since returning from an elbow injury for Triple-A Buffalo.
Barger has been limited to 32 Triple-A games this season due to that elbow injury, and he has not produced when he has been in the lineup for the Bisons. He is slashing .226/.329/.331 with two home runs and one steal in 143 plate appearances, as his development seems to have stalled for the moment.
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Blue Jays' Addison Barger: Rehabbing in lower minors
Rotowire
Barger (elbow) began a rehab assignment June 8 and has gone 1-for-10 with three walks and a run over four games between the Blue Jays' rookie-level Florida Complex League affiliate and Single-A Dunedin.
Before starting his rehab assignment, Barger hadn't played since April 28 due to the right elbow, so he may require a few more games in the lower levels of the minors to get his timing back at the plate before he returns from Triple-A Buffalo's 7-day injured list. Barger slashed .237/.333/.329 with an 11.6 percent walk rate and 31 percent strikeout rate in 87 plate appearances at Buffalo prior to being shut down with the injury.
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Blue Jays' Addison Barger: No structural damage
Rotowire
Barger, who has been sidelined with Triple-A Buffalo since April 28, had his right elbow checked out last week by Dr. Keith Meister in Texas and there was no structural damage found, Scott Mitchell of TSN.ca reports.
This is positive news for Barger, who is now rehabbing at the Blue Jays' spring training facility in Florida. He was off to a slow start to the season prior to suffering the elbow injury. Barger is slashing .237/.333/.329 with one home run, one steal and a 31 percent strikeout rate in 20 games.
Barger was optioned to Triple-A Buffalo by the Blue Jays on Monday, Mitch Bannon of SI.com reports.
Barger was attempting to win a spot on Toronto's bench to begin the season, but instead will start the year in Triple-A. With Barger heading to Buffalo, it appears that Otto Lopez has won a spot on the Blue Jays' Opening Day roster to begin 2023.
Blue Jays' Addison Barger: Displays power in spring debut
Rotowire
Barger went 1-for-3 with a solo home run in Saturday's Grapefruit League game against the Pirates.
Getting the start at third base and hitting sixth behind Blue Jays regulars like Vladimir Guerrero, Daulton Varsho and Danny Jansen, Barger turned on a fastball from Pittsburgh closer David Bednar and crushed it deep to right field in the fourth inning. Barger had a breakout year in the minors in 2022, ascending from High-A to Triple-A and posting a combined .306/.375/.544 slash line with 25 homers in 126 games, and the 23-year-old appears poised to make his big-league debut sometime this season, potentially in the same kind of utility role currently filled by Cavan Biggio.
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Blue Jays' Addison Barger: Getting work in outfield
Rotowire
Barger will spend some time in the outfield this spring, Keegan Matheson of MLB.com reports.
The 2018 sixth-round pick broke out last season, slashing .305/.375/.544 across 125 games at the three highest levels of the minors. He only reached Triple-A for eight games at the tail end of the year, so an Opening Day debut seems unlikely, but if he looks good in the outfield, he'll increase his potential paths to the big-league roster.
Blue Jays' Addison Barger: Shielded from Rule 5 draft
Rotowire
Barger was added to the Blue Jays' 40-man roster Tuesday, Shi Davidi of Sportsnet.ca reports.
Barger vaulted up Toronto's prospect list in 2022 and has now been protected from the upcoming Rule 5 draft. The 23-year-old began last season with High-A Vancouver and worked his way up to Triple-A Buffalo by mid-September. He went 10-for-32 with two home runs during his brief stint at Triple-A and had a .933 OPS for the season.
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Blue Jays' Addison Barger: Meteoric rise continues
Rotowire
Barger was promoted to Triple-A Buffalo in mid-September and went 11-for-31 (.355) with three homers and a 5:5 BB:K over eight games.
There was no level of baseball where pitchers were able to slow Barger down this season. A relatively unheralded prospect coming into the year, he rocketed from High-A to Triple-A over the course of the campaign, posting a spectacular composite slash line of .308/.378/.555 with 26 homers and 91 steals. A somewhat high strikeout rate is the only mark against him as a hitter, but Barger was able to trim that toward the end of the season too. The one complicating factor for the 22-year-old is that he's not an especially good fielder at either third base or shortstop, and the Jays are set at both of those positions for at least 2023. For Barger to find a place on Toronto's roster next year, he may have to move to second base or settle for a utility role.
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Blue Jays' Addison Barger: Scorching since rise to Double-A
Rotowire
Barger has hit .418/.467/.657 with four home runs in 18 games since being promoted to Double-A New Hampshire.
This hot streak has hardly come out of nowhere, as Barger posted a sharp .295/.361/.549 line with 14 homers and seven steals at High-A Vancouver before moving up. A sixth-round pick in 2018, he was mostly unremarkable in minor-league action prior to this season -- he did show some power in A ball last year, but he struck out far too often. However, Barger has cut his strikeout rate noticeably this season, and he's maintained that improvement since his promotion. He's still a bit raw defensively, but the 23-year-old has a strong arm and may be able to stick at shortstop. Of course, the Jays have Bo Bichette holding that position down for the foreseeable future.
