Toronto Blue Jays' Josh Donaldson Leaves Game Against Tampa Bay Rays With Apparent Injury

Josh Donaldson smacked a three-run homer in the third inning today against the Tampa Bay Rays. However, not only did the Toronto Blue Jays lose him in the seventh inning due to an injury, they also lost the game 5-3 thanks to their faulty bullpen.

Donaldson grounded out in the seventh and was unable to run it out. He limped out of the batter's box and instead exited the game with an apparent leg injury. His leg was seemingly bothering him earlier in the game, as evidenced during his trot around the bases after his home run. Check it out in the video below...

Following the loss, manager John Gibbons said Donaldson suffered a strained calf and "doesn't think it's a big deal." The slugger is considered day-to-day, and told reporters that his calf "locked up" after he hit the home run. The Blue Jays then announced the news on their Twitter account shortly after.

It's unknown what grade of a strain it is, but it's safe to say Toronto will need him back as soon as possible. As we've already seen in their last two games, if the Blue Jays don't score, they're unable to win or close out games, which was the case last season before general manager Alex Anthopoulos bolstered the starting rotation and bullpen at the trade deadline.

Toronto was below .500 before Anthopoulos began making the trades.

The Blue Jays' bullpen has blown the past two games and the team's offense was only able to score five total runs over that span (they scored 10 in their first two games and won both).

The reigning AL MVP is an integral aspect of their offensive production, and the team cannot afford to lose him for an extended period of time. Their next 13 games will be against some of the league's best offenses (Red Sox, Yankees and Orioles), so the Jays will need to have their offense at its strongest to avoid falling behind in April.

Stay tuned for updates on Donaldson's calf.

Tags

Toronto blue jays, Josh donaldson, Tampa bay rays, Injury