The American League-leading Toronto Blue Jays placed right-hander Chris Bassitt on the 15-day injured list on Saturday due to low back inflammation with hope that he will return in the postseason.
The move is retroactive to Friday. In a corresponding move, Toronto recalled rookie left-hander Mason Fluharty from Triple-A Buffalo.
Bassitt, 36, last pitched on Thursday, allowing three runs on eight hits and two walks with three strikeouts in 4 1/3 innings of a 4-0 loss at Tampa Bay.
The Blue Jays, who have seven games left in the regular season starting on Sunday, entered Saturday night’s game at Kansas City with an 89-65 record – best overall in the league and three games ahead of the New York Yankees in the AL East.
Bassitt is 11-9 with a 3.96 ERA, 52 walks and 166 strikeouts in 170 1/3 innings over 32 games (31 starts).
He has a career record of 83-65 with 409 walks and 1,191 strikeouts in 1,278 2/3 innings over 11 years with the Chicago White Sox (2014), Oakland Athletics (2015-16, 2018-21), New York Mets (2022) and Blue Jays. He was a 2021 All-Star while with the Athletics.
Fluharty, 24, is 4-2 with one save, a 4.94 ERA, 24 walks and 48 strikeouts in 47 1/3 innings over 51 relief appearances this season with Toronto. The Blue Jays selected him in the fifth round of the 2022 MLB Draft out of Liberty University.
