TORONTO - Blue Jays slugger Jose Bautista sat out his second straight game Saturday due to a right ankle injury.
Major League Baseball's home runs leader was still using a walking boot as he met with reporters before the Jays' afternoon game against the New York Yankees. He has been receiving regular treatment and is listed as day-to-day.
Bautista suffered the injury Thursday night while sliding into third base in Toronto's 16-7 win over the Yankees at Rogers Centre.
"There's less swelling, it's feeling a lot looser," Bautista said. "I feel like I can put my weight on the ankle now and I'm feeling much better."
Bautista said he made an aggressive slide as he was trying to break up a double play.
"As I slid my cleat got caught in the dirt and I just rolled over on my ankle a little bit," he said. "It wasn't as bad as I thought at first. It was painful and I definitely had some swelling and restricted movement yesterday but everything's improving a lot."
Bautista received two hours of treatment Saturday morning and had additional sessions set for later in the day. The injury will be re-evaluated Sunday.
With the Blue Jays off Monday, he's hoping to come back for the series opener against the visiting Seattle Mariners on Tuesday.
"I'm pretty confident but again it's not entirely my decision," Bautista said. "It's something that we're going to have to go day to day with and tomorrow we'll have a better idea."
Bautista has 31 home runs, 65 RBIs and is batting .336 this season. He batted cleanup for the American League in the all-star game earlier this week.
Bautista signed a US$65-million, five-year contract extension with the Blue Jays in the off-season.
