Carrera injury will test Jays’ outfield depth

TORONTO With the Toronto Blue Jays dealing with yet another injury, manager John Gibbons has entered uncharted territory.

“I don’t think I have seen (as many) in half a season, put it that way,” Gibbons said before the Jays and Tampa Bay Rays met Wednesday.

The latest to join the disabled list is outfielder Ezekiel Carrera, who suffered a fracture in his right foot on Tuesday against the Rays.

The Jays recalled Dwight Smith Jr. from the triple-A Buffalo Bisons. Smith was scheduled to start in left field and bat eighth on Wednesday.

“I didn’t think anything of it,” Gibbons said, referring to Carrera fouling a ball off his foot.

“Later on, it was pretty painful and he had trouble walking. Tests (were done) and he has a fracture in there.”

It’s not clear when Carrera, who was using crutches as the Jays gathered for their annual team photo a couple of hours before the game, might be able to return.

No less than 16 Jays have been placed on the DL in 2017, costing the club a total of 478 man-games.

That Smith had a couple of brief tenures with the Jays in May was valuable, he said. Smith collected his first major league hit, a pinchhit double, against the Milwaukee Brewers on May 24. It was the 24-year-old’s lone hit in four atbats in three games with the Jays.

“Knowing these guys makes it more comfortable, definitely,” Smith said. “You’re familiar with them and they have confidence in you. You just have to put it out there on the field. It’s relaxing knowing you have the support behind you.”

Smith, a first-round pick by the Jays in 2011 (53rd overall) was batting .303 in 55 games for the Bisons when he was summoned to Toronto.

Smith might not be around for long as Steve Pearce, rehabbing a strained calf in Buffalo, is expected to return to the Jays when the Chicago White Sox visit this weekend.