Toronto Blue Jays catcher Danny Jansen suffers fractured finger, lands on IL

Toronto Blue Jays catcher Danny Jansen suffered a fractured right middle finger Friday night in the team’s 13-9 win over the Colorado Rockies and will be placed on the injured list.

Jansen busted the finger in the bottom of the sixth inning when he took a ball of his hand while catching. While he stayed in the game, to finish out the inning, he was pinch-hit for in the top of the seventh by Alejandro Kirk, who made the most of it with a three RBI double that gave the club a 8-5 lead.

After Friday’s game, skipper John Schneider confirmed the news of the fractured finger. As noted by MLB.com’s Keegan Matheson, the fracture is near the base of Jansen’s finger and further testing will be conducted.

Sportsnet’s Ben Nicholson-Smith added Jansen would be placed on the IL.

Prior to his injury, Jansen went 1-for-3 at the plate with a two-run home run in the top of the sixth.

News of the injury is a significant blow to the Jays. Jansen has been rock solid behind the plate this season, and his bat has been red-hot. He’s slashed .226/.312/.464 with a .776 OPS with a lot of power behind the bat in the form of a .238 ISO. His wRC+ of 112 further solidifies that.

While the injury is undoubtedly a blow, Kirk’s been finding his way with much better success at the plate as of late with a .842 OPS and 122 wRC+ over the last two weeks. Those numbers are solid, no doubt, but over the same stretch Jansen had a 1.05 OPS and a 193 wRC+.

The Blue Jays are expected to call up catcher Tyler Heineman from Triple-A Buffalo to replace Jansen on the active roster. Heineman spent part of last season with the Jays after he was selected off waivers from the Pittsburgh Pirates in May.

He was granted free agency re-signing with the Pirates, but returned to the Jays in an April 30th trade that saw Toronto send struggling minor leaguer Vinny Capra the other way.

Zach Laing is the Nation Network’s news director and senior columnist. He can be followed on Twitter at @zjlaing, or reached by email at zach@oilersnation.com.