Former Blue Jays and current Red Sox catcher Danny Jansen etched his name into Major League Baseball history by playing for both teams in the same game, an unprecedented achievement, and in the same inning no less.
This statistically unique event was made possible due to the intricate baseball rule book and the unpredictable New England weather. Jansen became the only player ever to appear on both sides of a baseball box score when he took the field for Boston on Monday. The game resumed after being rain-delayed in June, a game he initially started for Toronto before his trade to the Red Sox.
“I was surprised when I found out I was the first one to do it,” Jansen said after going 1 for 4 for Boston, alongside completing an at-bat for Toronto in the Blue Jays’ 4-1 victory. “It’s cool, leaving a stamp like that on the game. It’s interesting, and it’s strange. And I’m grateful for the opportunity to have that.”
Back on June 26, while playing for Toronto, Jansen fouled off the only pitch he saw from Boston starter Kutter Crawford in the second inning before the game was halted due to rain. On July 27, Jansen found himself traded from Toronto to Boston for three minor leaguers.
As the buzz around Jansen’s potential entry into the record books grew, Red Sox manager Alex Cora committed to playing Jansen when the suspended game resumed, stating, “Let’s make history.”
“It was a very cool moment, just to be part of it,” Cora said on Monday. “I don’t know if it’s going to happen again. It has to be kind of like the perfect storm for that to happen—starting with the storm. And I’m glad that everybody enjoyed it.”
When the game resumed at 2:06 p.m. Monday—after a 65-day, 18-hour, and 35-minute delay—the Red Sox media relations coordinator, Daveson Perez, announced in the Fenway Park press box: “Pinch-hitting for Danny Jansen: Daulton Varsho. Defensive changes: Danny Jansen now at catcher.”
Behind the plate, Jansen witnessed Nick Pivetta strike Varsho out, completing the at-bat Jansen had started. Soon after, Jansen stepped up for the Red Sox with two outs in the bottom half of the frame. A sparse crowd, attending the makeup game, cheered him before he hit a lazy liner to first base, ending the inning.
“Building up until that point, maybe it was a bit strange,” Jansen reflected. “Once you stepped in the box and it was ‘Game on,’ I was just trying to stay present, stay locked in.”
Jansen’s family and friends were present to witness his moment in baseball history. When they arrived, his picture displayed on the scoreboard, still in a Blue Jays cap.
“When I walked out there today, yeah, I saw myself up there, for sure,” Jansen said. “That was just kind of like, ‘Well, that’s where we’re at.’”
Prior to the first pitch, the umpires had an extended discussion at home plate with the coaches, who brought out what could only be considered some of the most bizarre lineup cards in baseball history. Blue Jays manager John Schneider expressed pleasure in seeing his former player, a lifetime backup and a career .222 hitter, get some rare attention.
“I think it’s cool for him to kind of go down in the record books as the first player to do that,” Schneider remarked. “I’ve known Jano forever, and it’s something cool that he can always kind of say he was the first at, and he’s good at weird stuff. Pretty cool for him.”
Jansen produced Boston’s first hit of the game with a single in the fifth inning. He later had a flyout in the seventh and came up again with two outs in the ninth and a runner on second but struck out on a checked swing to end the game.
The 29-year-old right-handed hitter mentioned that he wore two jerseys in the game (three, including the Toronto one from June). He plans to keep one for himself and send another to the Baseball Hall of Fame; an authenticator was present to tag all of Jansen’s gear.
The Cooperstown shrine has requested the scorecard from official scorer Bob Ellis, who was also there when the game initially started in June.
“This scorecard will be a great tool to document and illustrate this history, showing Danny Jansen’s name on both teams,” Hall spokesman John Shestakofsky said.
