Toronto Blue Jays right fielder Jose Bautista reacts after causing a throwing error after Tampa Bay Rays centre fielder Kevin Kiermaier hit a single during third inning AL baseball action in Toronto on Tuesday, August 9, 2016.Nathan Denette/The Canadian Press
It isn't so much a question of how much playing time Jose Bautista will have to miss while on the disabled list after spraining his left knee.
The interesting part to the dilemma, which plopped in the lap of manager John Gibbons early on Wednesday, is how much the Blue Jays will actually miss their former all-star.
The 35-year-old hasn't exactly slipped into his baseball dotage gracefully. This is his second visit to the DL this season.
No doubt Bautista's recent frailty will cost him considerably after the season and he hits the free-agent market.
The Toronto right fielder missed 30 games in June and July with a bad case of turf toe after launching his left foot into the base of the wall at Citizens Bank Park in Philadelphia while chasing a hit.
And now this, injuring his knee in another odd fashion, catching a cleat in the turf at Rogers Centre while running in to snag a harmless ground ball by Tampa Bay's Kevin Kiermaier in the third inning of Tuesday's game.
Bautista then stumbled before regrouping to make an awkward underhanded toss that landed in the area code of second baseman Devon Travis, who was loitering nearby.
Bautista, who received an error on the play, remained in the game until the top of the ninth inning when he was a defensive replacement, his knee a growing concern.
"I was surprised by the way it felt [Wednesday morning]," a sullen Bautista told reporters before Toronto's wrap-up game against the Rays. "Obviously it was getting worse as the game was going so I knew that I did something. But I didn't expect it to be this bad when I woke up.
"That being said, I called the medical staff when I woke up and got the MRI and that's when we got the news."
That news was a Grade 1 knee sprain, the least serious and one that Bautista hopes he can shake off within the 15-day time-off allotment and return to the team without missing a beat.
"It's really frustrating, especially after an off-season that a lot of hard work went into just getting my body ready and hopefully avoiding these types of situations," Bautista said. "And then having it happen on two freak injuries or freak accidents, it's pretty disappointing."
It is the second starting outfielder the Blue Jays have lost this week. On Monday, centre fielder Kevin Pillar was sent to the DL with a left thumb sprain.
While the timing for this is not great, with the Blue Jays getting down to the nitty-gritty in their pursuit of a second-consecutive playoff appearance, Bautista has not been a beacon of strength this season, either offensively or defensively.
During Bautista's earlier convalescence, with Ezequiel Carrera performing yeoman's duty as the primary replacement in right field, the Blue Jays rattled off a 17-13 record.
At the time of his knee injury, Bautista was hitting .222 with 15 home runs. Although Carrera doesn't have the power of Bautista, his batting average of .258 is better.
Defensively, the dirty little secret that Bautista's once feared cannon of a right arm has lost a lot of its zip is starting to circulate and his range in the outfield is not what it once was.
Carrera is also a superior defender, as is Michael Saunders, who got the start in right Wednesday in place of Bautista.
Carrera is also hurt, nursing a sore Achilles tendon, but is slated to come off the DL on Tuesday and likely begin a short rehab assignment at Triple A in Buffalo.
Toronto general manager Ross Atkins said that recent Triple-A call-up Darrell Ceciliani will likely get a lot of the starts in right during Bautista's absence. Junior Lake, who was summoned from Buffalo on Wednesday to fill Bautista's opening on the roster, can also anticipate some work.
But in the opinion of the GM, Bautista's loss cannot be underestimated.
"Obviously when you lose one of the best players in the game that's a tough blow to the team," Atkins said Wednesday. "I think it's a resilient team, it's a group that's already been through some tough spots so we'll just look at how we can get better each day."
Gibbons said he is ready to deal with his sudden patchwork lineup.
"Zeke [Carrera] stepped in when [Bautista] was gone the last time and did a hell of a job for us," Gibbons said. "It's not easy now if you've got him and Pillar down. That's the way the game works. We've got some reinforcements, guys who are looking for opportunities."