Blue Jays put Richards on 15-day injured list

TORONTO – Trevor Richards is resting before the Toronto Blue Jays begin their final post-season push.

The reliable middle-innings reliever was put on Toronto’s 15-day injured list with neck inflammation on Thursday. Blue Jays manager John Schneider said Richards had been pitching through the pain but the team decided to think of the bigger picture.

“Something Richards has been battling the last couple of outings,” said Schneider in his office. “We’re trying to just squash it and get it out of there so he can be good to go for the remainder of the season.”

Richards (1-1) has a 2.98 earned-run average with 83 strikeouts over 54 1/3 innings pitched and has been one of Schneider’s go-to options in close games this year.

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He last pitched on Tuesday night, striking out two in a scoreless inning in a 13-3 loss to the Baltimore Orioles.

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“The plan was for him to go two innings that day, but he kind of felt it throughout his outing, so I wanted to be a little bit careful there,” said Schneider. “But it was on the road trip before that too a little bit, so we just want to take care of it.”

The team recalled fellow right-hander Bowden Francis from Toronto’s triple-A affiliate in Buffalo, N.Y. Francis was available for Thursday’s matinee against Baltimore at Rogers Centre.

Francis (1-0) has a 2.30 ERA and 14 strikeouts over 15 2/3 innings in seven games with the major-league club this year.

The Blue Jays travel to Boston on Friday to take on the Red Sox in a three-game series and then head on to Cleveland for a four-game series with the Guardians starting Monday.

Richards, shortstop Bo Bichette and closer Jordan Romano of Markham, Ont., will stay in Toronto for at least the Boston leg of the road trip. All three will continue their rehabilitation at Rogers Centre and may join the Blue Jays in Cleveland if they progress in their recovery.

Bichette is on the 10-day IL with right patellar tendinitis and Romano is on the 15-day IL with lower back soreness.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Aug. 3, 2023.