Brett Lawrie was seemingly days away from being called up in late May when a broken hand suffered at Triple-A sidelined him for two months.
Now he’s back and has resumed crushing the ball, leading to speculation that the Blue Jays are once again on the verge of calling up their top prospect.
When the call-up comes Lawrie will take over as Toronto’s starting third baseman, shifting Jose Bautista back to the outfield and likely sending a current regular to the minors (Travis Snider, Eric Thames) or waiver wire (Edwin Encarnacion).
Lawrie, a 2008 first-round pick acquired from the Brewers in a deal for Shaun Marcum this winter, is hitting .352 with 18 homers, 24 doubles, and 12 steals in 67 games at Triple-A as a 21-year-old.
There are questions about his defense at third base, but Lawrie projects as a middle-of-the-order impact bat and based on various articles in Toronto newspapers today he might be in the majors by week’s end.
