There's nobody who might best symbolize the bizarro 2021 world of the Toronto Blue Jays more than catcher Danny Jansen.
It's safe to say you won't find anybody on a minor-league rehab assignment working his way back from an injury that was suffered in the same place while playing in the big leagues.
That's how Jansen, the Bisons' most valuable player in 2018, has rolled in this crazy season.
Until Tuesday night, Jansen had not been in a game since July 21. It was the night of the Blue Jays' last appearance in Sahlen Field, a 7-4 loss to the Boston Red Sox. In the bottom of the seventh, a double to left-center turned into a nightmare as Jansen hobbled into second with a strained hamstring, sending him to the injured list with a similar ailment for the second time this season.
The injury shelved Jansen for more than a month and the Blue Jays have been very cautious with him. But there he was Tuesday night, back in Buffalo at Triple-A -- to work back from his injury suffered while MLB was here.
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"How about that?" Jansen said after going 1 for 3 with a sacrifice fly in the Bisons' series-opening 4-2 loss to the Worcester Red Sox. "It's been a wild year obviously."
Cavan Biggio is also here on rehab from a neck problem, and manager Casey Candaele said he's listed as day to day with a sore elbow suffered diving in the outfield over the weekend in Syracuse. But his stint essentially came from year-long struggles with his neck and not from anything he suffered here.
Jansen is a different story. He first injured the hamstring here sliding into third base during the June 6 loss to Houston and missed nearly a month. The situation against Boston was a crusher for the 26-year-old, Toronto's regular catcher the last two years.
"Pretty frustrating right then and there," Jansen recalled. "I walked all the way, had my head down all the way to the training room that time. It was really tough. I thought I was doing everything right."
Tuesday's return game came at designated hitter and the Bisons will stay cautious with Jansen the rest of the week
"He just has to see where he's at each day," Candaele said. "DH tonight, catch a game, depending on how he feels. That's how we move forward. And then the medical staff, whatever their recommendation is, will have a say."
Jansen said he felt good after his first night back on the field and expects to move behind the plate and catch at least half of Wednesday's game.
Jansen pulled a single between third and short in his initial at-bat in the first inning Tuesday, and also got in some extra running on a few full-count pitches to Cullen Large. Jansen also drove a long sacrifice fly to left in the fifth but perhaps the at-bat that will get the most scrutiny in Toronto came in the fourth.
A routine grounder to Worcester third baseman Yairo Munoz was turned into something by Jansen, who ran hard all the way through the bag at first and was rewarded with the base when Munoz's throw was wide. Jansen also ran second to home on Juan Graterol's grounder that was kept in in the infield, albeit he was thrown out at the plate. Two hard runs, no apparent issues.
"I ran the bases 4-5 times before this game and I got very confident running the bases," Jansen said. "That was one of the big steps before I started playing in games. I'm confident with running and turning and it was good to test it out."
Jansen's situation is a real dilemma for the Jays. Reese McGuire has had a breakout season behind the plate. Young Alejandro Kirk, who rocketed from the Alternate Training Site to the big leagues last year, continues to be an organizational favorite.
Still, Jansen is the best defender in the group and the player the pitching staff has enjoyed throwing to the most. That was especially true last year for staff ace Hyun Jin Ryu, who was in his first year of an $80 million free agent deal.
But even though Jansen was Toronto's regular catcher the last two years, his bat continues to be an issue. He hit only .207 in 107 games in 2019 and fell to .183 in 43 games of last year's shortened season, where his signature moment was a grand slam to cap a 10-run inning in a Sahlen Field win over the Yankees.
Once Jansen gets healthy, he should get playing time in September in Toronto, but it might be sparingly. The Jays love Kirk's bat, and McGuire is out of minor-league options. Jansen will have to show he's able to hit at the big-league level if he wants to stay.
That could be a question for 2022. Right now, he's just trying to make sense out of his 2021.
"I've learned a lot about my body and on this second rehab especially," he said. "I was doing everything I can to stay on the field and go from there. Tonight was a great first step. It was awesome to be back on the field playing with the fellas and it was exciting for me."
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The Bisons had only five hits in Tuesday's game and starter Nick Allgeyer (4-4) gave up all four Worcester runs while throwing 4 2/3 innings. Scranton/Wilkes-Barre pulled even with the Herd for first place in the Northeast Division with its 5-2 win at Lehigh Valley as the Bisons and RailRiders are both 56-37. Buffalo and Worcester play here again Wednesday night at 7 (Radio 1520 AM).
