MLB athlete is all set to create an unusual record on Monday by representing two different teams in a single match.
The Boston Red Sox and Toronto Blue Jays face off at Fenway Park on Monday to wrap up a game that was suspended between the two teams back on June 26 due to bad weather.
Things get intriguing here.
At the time of the suspension, Jansen, a catcher, was playing for the Blue Jays during an at-bat. A month later, he was traded to the Red Sox.
With the resumption of the game, Jansen is no longer a Blue Jay but a Red Sox player, meaning the score sheet might show him playing for both teams if he gets into the action.
Red Sox manager Alex Cora revealed his plan to make history on Friday, stating that Jansen will start in Game 1.
“He will play Game 1, by the way. For all the folks checking the history, yeah, let me toss that out there,” Cora informed the Boston Herald.
Monday's matchup is scheduled for 2:05 p.m. ET and will resume in the top of the second inning with the score at 0-0 and Jansen at the plate. The Blue Jays will substitute Jansen with a pinch-hitter, and Jansen will come in as a defensive replacement for the Red Sox, taking over for catcher Reese McGuire, who was let go by the team earlier in the month.
Cora has been bombarded with messages from sports journalists asking if Jansen will be catching.
“Yeah, he’s catching!,” Cora confirmed. “Let's make some history.”
On Monday's podcast "Blair and Barker" on Sportsnet, Jansen referred to the peculiar situation as an "oddity."
"What an oddity, right?," Jansen said. "It's such a bizarre, crazy thing for baseball. People have been asking me about it and approaching me about it, so it's going to be a fun one."
Later in the series against the Jays, Jansen could potentially play for the Red Sox following his newfound fame as the answer to a future trivia question.
The resumption of the suspended game brings an unusual aspect to sport, as Jansen, now a Red Sox player, could contribute to both teams' scoresheets.
With Jansen starting as a catcher in Game 1 for the Red Sox, the baseball world prepares to witness a unique sports moment.
