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.
