Josh Smith is one game away from rejoining the Blue Jays.
He'll play one final Triple-A rehab game today, serving as DH, before rejoining Toronto tonight.
The plan lines him up to be activated Tuesday, closing out a hamstring injury that had him projected to be out until at least Aug. 30.
Before landing on the shelf, Smith had appeared in 59 games this season, hitting three home runs with 11 RBIs across 164 at-bats.
He was actually swinging it well in his last stretch before the injury, collecting five hits over his final 10 games there.
Getting him back gives Toronto another body for an infield that's had to shuffle constantly through injuries this season.
A DH-only rehab game today suggests the hamstring is close to full strength, without requiring him to test it defensively just yet.
Why Mantiply's timeline is moving on a slower track
Joe Mantiply is on a different schedule entirely. He'll throw again for Buffalo tomorrow, with Toronto planning to reassess after that outing.
Mantiply has been working back from a knee injury that had him projected to be out until at least Aug. 29.
Unlike Smith's clear Tuesday target, Mantiply's return still depends on how his arm responds to this next appearance.
That's a normal part of a reliever's rehab process, building up appearance by appearance rather than hitting one clean checkpoint.
Toronto is chasing a wild-card spot with 3.5 games separating them from the final spot, and every returning body matters at this stage.
Smith's return looks close to locked in. Mantiply's is still one outing away from getting a real answer.
Are you more encouraged by Josh Smith's return timeline or Joe Mantiply's next step?
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