Yimi Garcia took an important step Saturday toward making his return to the Toronto Blue Jays.
The reliever retired all three batters he faced and struck out two in an inning of work for the triple-A Buffalo Bisons against the Rochester Red Wings.
Garcia needed just 10 pitches to get through the fourth inning, with seven of them for strikes.
Garcia was placed on the 15-day injured list in mid-June with right elbow ulnar neuritis.
The right-hander has been Toronto’s best bullpen arm in 2024, posting a 2.57 ERA, a 3-0 record, 37 strikeouts and five saves over 28.0 innings this season.
He has been a stabilizing force in what has been a shaky season for Blue Jays relievers, as Jordan Romano is recovering from elbow surgery, Erik Swanson has been demoted to Buffalo and veteran Tim Mayza has been released.