Toronto Blue Jays manager John Gibbons is unsure if Jose Bautista will be ready to play Friday night.
Bautista rolled his ankle running to first base late in Thursday’s 10-8 win over the Cleveland Indians and Gibbons said the team needs to re-evaluate the injury before determining if the right fielder will be in the lineup against the Boston Red Sox.
Bautista: ankle feels ok. Will get treatment before game, see how ankle responds & go from there. Doesn’t expect to miss much time if any.
— Ben Nicholson-Smith (@bnicholsonsmith) April 5, 2013
“We’ll see what happens when he gets to the park,” Gibbons told Jeff Blair and Jack Morris Friday on Baseball Central on Sportsnet 590 The Fan. “You never know how those things will react. He just twisted it when he hit the bag late in the game. (He) may take a day or two. Who knows? Hopefully not but we’ll have a better idea when he gets there (Friday).”
Bautista said he and manage John Gibbons will decide pre-game whether he’ll play vs Red Sox
— Ben Nicholson-Smith (@bnicholsonsmith) April 5, 2013
After the game, Bautista, who in three games is batting .250 with two home runs and four RBIs, said he does not believe the injury was too serious.
“I was a little sore so I was kind of testing it,” Bautista told reporters Thursday. “When I was walking in, I felt like I was a little more sore than I’d like to be in order to not let it get in my head and play defence. We came in, took a look at it, and it’s good to go. Just a little soreness and that happens, you play a long season you’re going to have aches and pains here and there. It’s nothing serious.”
One thing Gibbons is sure of is that shortstop Jose Reyes will be Toronto’s lineup Friday after a minor scare Thursday when Reyes slid into second base head first and banged into the knee of Indians shortstop Asdrubal Cabrera in the fifth inning. He appeared shaken up but remained in the game.
“With Reyes, that gets your attention real quick,” he said. “The way things are going now — any type of head injury—even if it’s minor, it seems like players are out a long time. That’s the first thing that comes to your mind. He seemed fine. He was checked out by doctors after the game and they don’t think it’s any big deal. He’ll definitely be out there tonight.”
Heading into Friday night, the big story around Toronto is the return of former manager John Farrell – who was traded to the Red Sox in the off-season.
While some fans are getting ready to show their displeasure for Farrell’s decision to leave Toronto, Gibbons does not expect players the players to treat the game any differently.
Bautista, at a promotional event for MLB ’13 The Show, said he’s treating the return of John Farrell like a regular game. Not too concerned.
— Ben Nicholson-Smith (@bnicholsonsmith) April 5, 2013
“I don’t think they will recognize much of it”, he said. “They’re out there to play a game.”
Gibbons would not put much stock into the storyline and quipped that Farrell’s departure opened up a job for him with the Blue Jays.
“I guess I should say I’m glad it happened,” Gibbons joked. “Otherwise I wouldn’t be here. There’s been a lot of attention thrown on it. It really doesn’t involve me. The fans are very excited about it. If he was still here, I wouldn’t be.
The Blue Jays have a 1-2 record and open up a three-game set against the Red Sox Friday when Josh Johnson makes his Toronto debut at the Rogers Centre.
