Blue Jays eye Friday for Travis' return
Rookie working to regain swing on rehab assignment
ST. PETERSBURG -- The Blue Jays appear to be targeting Friday as a possible return date for injured second baseman Devon Travis.
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Travis has been out since May 16 with inflammation in his left shoulder. There had been a possibility that the rookie infielder would return on Monday, but the Blue Jays decided to give him a little more time.
The 24-year-old is on a rehab assignment with Triple-A Buffalo, which had an off-day on Monday. Travis is hitting .152 (5-for-33) with two walks in eight Minor League games, and the club wanted to make sure he worked out some kinks at the plate before coming back.
"He's starting to swing it better," Blue Jays manager John Gibbons said. "Early on, his timing was off and he wasn't getting a lot of hits. His at-bats, it showed the rust.
"He's starting to kick it in a little bit now, so we'll just go day by day with him. I'm guessing, maybe at the end of the week, after the off-day possibly. ... He's going the right way, but it took some at-bats."
Travis went hitless in his first seven rehab at-bats, but since then, he has at least one hit in four of the past five games. Ryan Goins will continue to start at second base during Travis' absence, while Munenori Kawasaki assumes the utility infielder role.
In 36 games with the Blue Jays, Travis hit .271 with a .336 on-base percentage and an .839 OPS. He also had seven homers and picked up American League Rookie of the Month honors for April.