Blue Jays include pitcher Francisco Liriano on ALCS roster
Pitcher was struck in head by line drive in series vs. Texas
The Blue Jays included Francisco Liriano on their 25-man roster for the American League Championship Series on Friday, confident that the veteran pitcher has recovered from a mild concussion suffered in Texas.
Liriano was hit in the back of the head by a Carlos Gomez line drive in the eighth inning of Game 2 of the AL Division Series with the Texas Rangers on Oct. 7. He left the game on his own steam and was diagnosed with a mild concussion after being taken to hospital for tests.
Under MLB's concussion protocol, he is not eligible to return to action until Game 2 on Saturday, meaning Toronto will have to go a player down in Friday's Game 1 with a 24-man roster.
The Jays watched him pitch Thursday to check him out in advance of declaring their roster.
"He's got a chance to be a valuable guy to us if he's healthy," Toronto manager John Gibbons said.
The 32-year-old left-hander can start or come on in relief. The Jays have been using him out of the bullpen recently.
The Toronto lineup also included second baseman Devon Travis, who has been nursing a knee injury.
Meantime, Justin Smoak and Scott Feldman were replaced by Ryan Goins and Dalton Pompey.
Pompey brings speed off the bench while Goins adds versatility to the lineup.
Cleveland carrying 2 catchers
The Indians will carry two catchers and two left-handed relievers on their ALCS roster against Toronto.
For its matchup with the Blue Jays, Cleveland added rookie lefty Ryan Merritt and dropped catcher Chris Gimenez, who was on the roster for the division series sweep of Boston but didn't play. Without Gimenez, Roberto Perez and Yan Gomes will handle the catching duties.
Gomes has made a remarkable recovery from a broken hand sustained in September to be ready for the ALDS. He had been expected to miss up to two months, but Gomes worked his way back and said the fracture has healed enough that he can play.
Gimenez and Gomes were the last two players to leave the field Thursday as the Indians worked out before Friday's series opener. Both catchers took turns throwing to third and second in what may have been a final test to make sure Gomes was OK.
Merritt spent the ALDS in Arizona, where he and several other Indians pitchers threw bullpen sessions and simulated games. Merritt gives Indians manager Terry Francona a second lefty option put of the bullpen along with Andrew Miller, who shut down the Red Sox in two appearances.
Merritt pitched five innings in his first major league start against Kansas City on Sept. 30. He's gone 13-8 with a 3.79 earned-run average over the past two seasons at triple-A Columbus.
Indians starter Danny Salazar remains sidelined with forearm tightness. The club had hoped he might be available for the ALCS, but Francona said the right-hander isn't quite there.