Lawrie sits out with sore back

KANSAS CITY -- Blue Jays third baseman Brett Lawrie was not in the lineup Wednesday because of a sore back. Juan Francisco drew the start at third and hit in the No. 6 slot.

Manager John Gibbons wanted to be cautious with Lawrie on a cool evening.

"His back flared up a little bit," Gibbons said. "I figured with [Casey] Janssen and [Adam] Lind being out, we don't need another guy going down. It's maybe a day thing." Francisco has played some third base, as well as first base. He started the evening hitting .242 with two homers and three runs batted in.