Danny Jansen set to become the first player in MLB history to play for two teams in the same game

On June 26, the Blue Jays started the rubber match of a three-game series against the Boston Red Sox at Fenway, before the rain came and washed it away. In the first inning, Bo Bichette struck out, Spencer Horwitz flew out, Vladimir Guerrero Jr. walked. Justin Turner grounded out to end the inning. Starter Yariel Rodríguez generated three ground outs and a walk in the bottom of the first.

The top of the second saw the delay, but George Springer (batting fifth) struck out to lead-off the inning, while Davis Schneider walked. Jansen was in the middle of the at-bat with a 0-1 count before the game was suspended, and eventually postponed.

On August 26, the game will resume and oh my this has the makings of a weird game. Coming into the June series, the Blue Jays suffered their only two sweeps of the season, and lost the first game 7-6 for a seven-game losing streak. The second came saw them win emphatically by a score of 9-4, setting up the rubber match.

Those two sweeps all but guaranteed that the team would sell at the 2024 trade deadline, doing just that. Here’s what the lineup looked like on June 25:

1.  Bo Bichette
2.  Spencer Horwitz
3.  Vladimir Guerrero Jr.
4.  Justin Turner
5.  George Springer
6.  Davis Schneider
7.  Danny Jansen
8.  Isiah Kiner-Falefa
9.  Kevin Kiermaier

So yeah, a lot has changed. Justin Turner, Danny Jansen, Isiah Kiner-Falefa, and Kevin Kiermaier were all traded at the deadline, while Bo Bichette is still on the 10-day Injured List. There’ll be a ton of pinch hitters, including one who’ll absorbs Jansen’s 0-1 count when play resumes.

Speaking of Jansen, the 29-year-old catcher is slashing .257/.366/.429 with two home runs in 41 plate appearances for the Red Sox since the trade. In return, the Jays received prospects Gilberto Batista, Cutter Coffey, and Eddinson Paulino.

Adding to the weirdness, José Berríos will start that game, and it’ll technically be a relief appearance. It will only be his second relief appearance of his career, and Yariel Rodríguez will start Tuesday’s game, meaning he’ll start two games in two days (on paper, obviously). Weird.

This season is a wash, but along with a freaky coincidence on Tuesday’s game (read the post-game for more), the Blue Jays have played in some weird games. Weird, losing season baseball is great.