Boston Red Sox catcher Danny Jansen will make some unusual baseball history on Monday.
The seven-year veteran will become the first MLB player to play for both teams in one game when the Red Sox and Toronto Blue Jays finish a matchup that was suspended by rain on June 26. The game will resume on Monday as the first half of a doubleheader.
Jansen was a member of the Blue Jays for the original game, but was traded to Boston on July 27. Red Sox manager Alex Cora confirmed that Jansen would be substituted into the lineup when the matchup resumes, meaning he’ll be on record as playing for both teams in the same game.
Reporters and columnists have been asking Cora about the possibility of Jansen playing in the resumed game, aware of the unusual situation that could occur, according to the Boston Herald’s Gabrielle Starr. The manager made the announcement before Friday’s game versus the Arizona Diamondbacks.
“Yah, he’s catching,” said Cora, according to Starr. “Let’s make history!”
When this game resumes on Monday, Danny Jansen, who was AT the plate for the Blue Jays when the game was suspended, will be BEHIND the plate for the Red Sox while a pinch-hitter takes over his PA…making him the first player in MLB history to play for both teams in the same game pic.twitter.com/Y0UMVakx6S
— Sarah Langs (@SlangsOnSports) August 23, 2024
Jansen, 29, has appeared in 13 games for the Red Sox, batting .257 with a .794 OPS, two home runs and five RBI. With Toronto, he played 61 games, compiling a .212 batting average, .671 OPS, 13 doubles, six homers and 18 RBI.
The June 26 game was tied at 0–0 in the bottom of the second inning when it was suspended. Jansen was actually batting for the Blue Jays with one out, a runner on, and was behind in the count 0–1 at the time. He will now replace Reese McGuire in Boston‘s lineup. McGuire was designated for assignment when the Red Sox acquired Jansen.
“I don’t even know how this works,” Jansen said to The Athletic after being traded to Boston. “I’ve heard about it a couple times. That’d be funky.”
