Yohendrick Piñango probably didn’t think his career in MLB would start like this — or result in him going back to the minor leagues.
Piñango, 24, got off to a hot start with the Blue Jays, who have been dealt a litany of injuries early in the 2026 season. He surprised everyone by hitting .423 with a .906 OPS.
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Nonetheless, Piñango will head back to Triple-A Buffalo on May 9. Toronto activated Addison Barger from the injured list and sent Piñango to their top farm team to make room.
Manager John Schneider told reporters that it was a “tough decision with his performance” but acknowledged Piñango needs to play more than he would with the Blue Jays now that Barger is back.
Barger is batting second against the Los Angeles Angels on Saturday.
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Piñango, a left-handed hitter from Venezuela, at least gave the Blue Jays something to think about. Only one of his 11 hits, a double, went for extra bases. But he acquitted himself remarkably well at baseball’s highest level.
In 22 Triple-A games prior to his promotion, Piñango hit .288 with a .370 OBP and .488 slugging percentage, with three home runs.
Unfortunately for Piñango, he’s buried on a depth chart behind three other left-handed hitting outfielders in Barger, Jesús Sanchez and Daulton Varsho. Nathan Lukes, another left-handed hitting outfielder, is on the 10-day injured list.
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Toronto is 17-21 after capturing the American League pennant last year and coming within a couple outs of winning the World Series.
Offense has been a problem in Toronto. At 3.92 runs per game, only three teams (the Texas Rangers, New York Mets and San Francisco Giants) are scoring less than the Jays.
Piñango’s batting average was unsustainable. He isn’t the next Tony Gwynn. But if the veterans ahead of him on the depth chart continue to struggle, Piñango is in line to return to the big leagues in a hurry.
