Blue Jays should expect DL stint for Jose Reyes

When Toronto Blue Jays manager John Gibbons took to the podium on Thursday night and was ask about the status of shortstop Jose Reyes, he could only commit to the fact that Reyes will not be in Friday’s line-up against the Atlanta Braves. As to what may lie ahead, Gibbons indicated that Reyes would be evaluated on Friday, but there was resignation there.

"“He’s a little tender in the rib area, so we took him out as a precaution. We’ll re-evaluate that tomorrow,” said Gibbons. “No, you won’t see him tomorrow.”"

What Gibbons didn’t say were the magic word that was being flouted by the Toronto media; oblique injury.

Jose Reyes left Thurdsay’s game after hitting a weak grounder to second base. After lightly jogging to first, Reyes appeared to grab his left side on the way back to the dugout and was removed from the game at the top of the second inning. Ryan Goins, who the Blue Jays had recalled from Triple-A Buffalo earlier in the day in what can now only be seen as a precautionary move for Reyes, replaced him in the field for the remainder of the game.

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Gregor Chisholm of MLB.com indicated that Reyes will miss the next three games to rest, tacking on a day to what Gibbons had previously alluded to. Reyes was originally scheduled to have a day off on Saturday, with Steve Tolleson likely to draw the start with left-hander Alex Wood getting the start for Atlanta.

A three-day rest still seems pretty light at this stage, and I wouldn’t be surprised to see Reyes land on the 15-day disabled list at this point. With the shortstop having been trying to play through the pain since the series in Baltimore last week, a more extended rest would seem to be in order and the disabled list will allow the Blue Jays to avoid playing with a shortened bench. Given the fact that the condition seems to be worsening over the last week, albeit while playing through it, it seems unlikely that a 3-day rest will help.

And there in lies the rub. With two outs in the bottom of the ninth, Ryan Goins strode to the plate representing the tying run for the Blue Jays. With only Steve Tolleson available on the bench and a right-hander on the mound, the Blue Jays were forced to bat Goins, who promptly popped up to shortstop to end the game. Not that Reyes represents a huge upgrade in the clutch department, but having an alternative for the contact challenged Goins would have been preferential. Of course, that couldn’t really be helped on Thursday night, but it is a situation the Blue Jays would likely prefer to avoid in next week or so.

Jose Reyes was off to a great start to the 2015 season, slashing .324/.350/.405 to start the year. The Blue Jays will need to find a decent alternative at the lead-off spot in the coming days, with Devon Travis being the most likely candidate to get the call.

Next: Recap: Blue Jays lose another tight game to the Rays

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