Danny Jansen is preparing to do something no major league player has ever done: He will be the first player to play for both teams in the same game.
Jansen is a catcher for the Red Sox and was acquired by Boston at the end of the trade deadline in a deal with the Toronto Blue Jays. Jansen played in a Blue Jays game against the Red Sox at Fenway Park on June 26. The game was delayed by rain and eventually called off in the second inning.
Jansen was on the roster as a catcher for the Blue Jays and was batting ninth. He was at bat when play was suspended. The Blue Jays will need to replace his spot in the lineup with another player, and that will most likely be Alejandro Kirk, Toronto’s primary catcher.
Play will resume Monday before Toronto’s scheduled four-game series against the Red Sox begins. The second game of the series follows the suspended game, with single games scheduled for Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday.
Boston manager Alex Cora has already announced that Jansen will play for the Red Sox. Reese McGuire was the catcher for Boston in the game, but has since been called up for another player.
This will make him the only player to play for both teams in a major league game. Jansen recognized this opportunity shortly after his trade to the Red Sox.
“I don’t even know how that works,” the catcher told Jen McCaffrey and Kaitlyn McGrath of The Athletic. “I’ve heard about it a couple of times. That would be crazy.”
Red Sox signed Jansen to strengthen the catcher situation
Since signing Jansen, the former Blue Jay has put up some good numbers for the Red Sox.
Before Friday night’s game against the Arizona Diamondbacks, Jansen has played in 13 games for the Red Sox. He has a batting average of .257/.366/.429 with 2 home runs and 5 runs batted in.
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His combined numbers for the Blue Jays and Red Sox aren’t overly impressive, but he’s shown he can hit big at different times. Heading into the 2024 season, he has a batting average of .212/.303/.369 with 6 home runs and 18 RBI.
Jansen had his most productive season in 2023, when he hit .228/.312/.474 with 17 home runs and 53 RBI. Jansen was the backup catcher for Connor Wong in Boston.
The Red Sox currently sit in third place in the American League East, 7.0 games behind the league-leading New York Yankees with a 67-59 record. They finished their recent road trip to Baltimore and Houston with a 4-3 record, splitting a 4-game series with the Orioles and winning 2 of 3 games against the Astros.
Steve Silverman has covered the NFL for more than 35 years and his articles have appeared in ESPN Magazine, Bleacher Report, CBS Sports, Pro Football Weekly and Forbes.com. He has written 10 books, including “Who’s Better, Who’s Best in the NFL.”
