Encarnacion day to day due to tight back

DETROIT -- Edwin Encarnacion is considered day to day after he was forced to depart the Blue Jays' 8-2 victory over the Tigers on Wednesday night because of a tight back.

Encarnacion was vague about the timing of the injury, but it's clear that the issue wasn't isolated to Wednesday's game. The discomfort increased vs. the Tigers, but this seems to be a situation that has been bothering him for at least a couple of days.

The injury doesn't appear to be overly serious, and while Encarnacion likely will sit out the series finale on Thursday, he also wouldn't completely rule out the possibility of playing.

"I don't think it's anything bad," Encarnacion said following Wednesday's game. "I'll see tomorrow if I need maybe one day or maybe I feel I can play DH. We'll see tomorrow."

Designated hitter Adam Lind likely will see the bulk of the playing time at first base if Encarnacion requires some additional rest. Juan Francisco also could see action at designated hitter, which would then allow Brett Lawrie to move back to third base for a brief stint.

Encarnacion is coming off arguably the best month of his career. The 31-year-old tied Mickey Mantle for the most home runs by an American League player with 16 homers in May. He also posted a .281 average with a 1.132 OPS, 33 RBIs and 16 walks over the span of 30 games.