Jose Bautista set to return Tuesday for Toronto Blue Jays
By Hayden Kane
If the Toronto Blue Jays weren’t a real threat atop the American League East, we would probably know it by now.
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With the beginning of July fast approaching, the Blue Jays remain atop the division despite facing the usual trials and tribulations that each team faces over the course of a season. Injuries to key players have been among those challenges, and the Blue Jays have still found a way to win games.
On the health front they will get one key player back at the beginning of next week. Jose Bautista sounds like he is all set to return to the team on Tuesday after dealing with a strained hamstring the past few days. According to Gregor Chisholm of MLB.com:
"Bautista, who has a strained hamstring, went through a series of running drills prior to Saturday afternoon’s game against the White Sox. There’s a slight chance he could play Sunday, but with an off-day coming on Monday it’s likely that the club will wait an additional couple of days."
There is certainly no need to rush Bautista in that regard, even if the team would like to have him return as soon as possible.
The timing is good for the Blue Jays as they prepare for a wicked west coast road trip one week from now. On that trip they will have the Oakland Athletics and Los Angeles Angels, arguably the two best teams in the American League. With the Baltimore Orioles and New York Yankees still lingering in the standings, those will be key games for Toronto.
Thankfully for them, it sounds like they will have their slugger back in the lineup for that stretch.