![\"Daulton](\"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/GettyImages-2263413971-e1776516802361.jpg\")
\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n
\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tGetty\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n
Blue Jays have signed a new player while losing Daulton Varsho<\/p>\n
The Toronto Blue Jays<\/a> have had a rough start to their 2026 MLB<\/a> season. To say that they are a \u201clittle banged up\u201d is a gross exaggeration. Another injury was sustained in their latest loss to the Arizona Diamondbacks<\/a>: Daulton Varsho<\/a>. He joins the likes of Addison Barger, Alexander Kirk, George Springer, and Anthony Santander<\/a>. However, the Blue Jays have recently brought in new bodies, such as Lenyn Sosa<\/a>, Tomoya Kinjo, and Adam Hackenberg.<\/p>\n As the losses mount, Toronto is losing ground on the New York Yankees<\/a>, Tampa Bay Rays<\/a>, and the Baltimore Orioles.<\/p>\n In addition to their newest signing, there are injury updates in regard to Varsho, Springer, and Barger<\/p>\n Toronto Blue Jays Sign Adam Hackenberg<\/p>\n On the same day as Jackie Robinson Day, the Blue Jays added the aforementioned Hackenberg. According to their transaction page, they agreed to a minor-league contract<\/a>.<\/p>\n Hackenberg is a 26-year-old catcher<\/a> who bats and throws right-handed. He has spent his baseball career in the Chicago White Sox<\/a> system until being released this past March.<\/p>\n In 63 AA and AAA minor league games in 2025, Hackenberg recorded three home runs, 22 RBIs, 45 hits, 11 doubles, and four stolen bases.<\/p>\n Hackenberg\u2019s \u2018Raw Power\u2019 And Defensive Abilities<\/p>\n Although he was recently released by the White Sox, he was once one of their top 30 prospects. Baseball America listed him as their 29th-best prospect in 2023.<\/p>\n His scouting report from that time is a mixed bag, but it offers some great value.<\/p>\n \u201cHackenberg is a defense-first catcher. Offensively, he needs to improve his approach to get more of a line drive stroke to go along with his plus raw power,\u201d the report reads<\/a>. \u201cIt\u2019s a slow bat and a stiffer swing with effort, which often causes him to mishit balls. He\u2019s consistently graded as the best defensive catcher in the system, and moves easily behind the plate.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cHe\u2019s an aggressive framer with solid leadership skills who is overall an above-average defensive catcher now, who could become a plus defender in the future.\u201d<\/p>\n Sadly, teams can\u2019t power-hit their way to championships. Players of different roles and skill-sets are needed, and it never hurts to have an above-average catcher who still has some hitting potential to explore. The 6-foot-1 Hackenberg appears to be a worthwhile gamble for the Blue Jays.<\/p>\n Blue Jays Lose Daulton Varsho During Arizona Diamondbacks Game<\/p>\n During Friday night\u2019s game against the Diamondbacks, Varsho left because of an injury. Toronto shared the news on social media.<\/p>\n \u201cUPDATE: OF Daulton Varsho was removed from tonight\u2019s game with left knee discomfort,\u201d the team posted on X.<\/a><\/p>\n Late on April 17th, Mitch Bannon offered a new report on Varsho\u2019s status.<\/p>\n \u201cThe outfielder is day to day, manager John Schneider said postgame,\u201d Bannon reported<\/a>. \u201cVarsho swung at two pitches in his first-inning at-bat, showing no signs of discomfort after either. He played two balls in the bottom of the second, corralling a line drive and fielding a single. Those defensive plays were his last before leaving Friday\u2019s contest.\u201d<\/p>\n Addison Barger & George Springer Return Timeline<\/p>\n In the same report, Bannon offered some insight into when a few other bats could return to game action.<\/p>\n \u201cThe Jays, who lost Anthony Santander to shoulder surgery ahead of spring training, have since placed George Springer (toe), Addison Barger (ankles), and Alejandro Kirk<\/a> (thumb) on the IL,\u201d the report states. \u201cBarger and Springer won\u2019t likely be out long term, but are still at least a week away from rejoining the club.\u201d<\/p>\n Either way, when these players come back, it will be a breath of fresh air.<\/p>\n \n\t\t\tCaleb Kerney<\/a> Caleb covers the NHL, MLB, and Cricket for Heavy.com. He has covered professional hockey since 2022, including bylines at Dobber Prospects, The Hockey Writers, and The Hockey News. More about Caleb Kerney<\/a>\t\t<\/p>\n \n\t\t\tMore Heavy on Blue Jays\n\t\t<\/p>\n \n\t\t\t\tLoading more stories\n\t\t<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Getty Blue Jays have signed a new player while losing Daulton Varsho The Toronto Blue Jays have had…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":678431,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2378],"tags":[5,377,2554,4,282,70,2553],"class_list":{"0":"post-678430","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-toronto-blue-jays","8":"tag-baseball","9":"tag-blue-jays","10":"tag-bluejays","11":"tag-mlb","12":"tag-toronto","13":"tag-toronto-blue-jays","14":"tag-torontobluejays"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/channels.im\/@mlb\/116426261822875807","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/678430","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=678430"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/678430\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/678431"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=678430"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=678430"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=678430"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}