Yimi Garcia dominates Triple-A rehab start as Blue Jays near return

Yimi Garcia gave the Blue Jays exactly the kind of Triple-A proof they wanted, overpowering his latest rehab stint with three strikeouts and a fastball that reached 96.6 mph. More important for Toronto’s battered late innings, the outing suggested the 35-year-old right-hander was finally closing in on a return that could reshape the bullpen right away.

Garcia’s rehab route has been built around patience after 2025 right elbow surgery, a cleanup procedure in September 2025, and a stint on the 60-day injured list that was made retroactive to March 22 before he was formally placed there on March 25. His path took him through Single-A Dunedin and then to Triple-A Buffalo Bisons, where the final checkpoint now looks less like an open-ended assignment and more like the last step before Toronto can decide how aggressively to use him.

The most recent outing mattered because it checked the boxes Toronto has been waiting on. MLB.com reported Garcia pitched one inning for Triple-A Buffalo on June 13, allowed one run on two hits, and was likely headed for another rehab appearance before activation. By the time he struck out all three hitters he faced in his latest Buffalo stop, the conversation had shifted from whether his elbow would hold up to whether the Blue Jays were ready to plug him back into leverage work.

That is the larger value of this rehab performance. Toronto has been working toward full health, and Sportsnet reported that John Schneider suggested Garcia could meet the club during the upcoming road trip, likely in Boston, Massachusetts, where the team planned to decide what comes next. For a bullpen that has been taxed, the decision is not just about bringing back a healthy arm. It is about whether Garcia can reclaim the late-inning role that made him one of Toronto’s more trusted relievers before the injury.

There is still one final layer to the evaluation. Reports around the club indicated Toronto may want to see whether Garcia can handle a more regular usage pattern before activating him, which makes Buffalo the last real audition rather than the finish line itself. But with the velocity back in the mid-90s and the strikeout total clean, the Blue Jays look close to getting a leverage arm who can matter immediately, not just eventually.